Movie review by Neil Sadler
Starring: Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Steve-O, Chris Pontius
Director: Jeff Tremaine
It is very difficult to review a film like JACKASS 3D. For a start, there is no plot. There is no characterisation. There isn’t any acting (although some of the stunts seem so staged maybe there is.) But it is also one of those films that are critic-proof. You will know before you go into the film if youâll enjoy it.
If you’ve seen the series or the other 2 films then you pretty much know what you are going to get and if self-mutilation and self-degradation on a staggering scale of stupidity are your âbagâ then JACKASS 3D offers more of the same. Here, of course, though, you get the added joy of being able to watch projectile bodily fluids flying out of the screen at you in shiny colourful 3D.
For its running length of 90-odd minutes we watch the gang indulge in a series of stunts of varying degrees of stupidity, most of which involve serious personal risk. They laugh at one another and themselves, generally relative to the amount of pain they are causing.
âHighlightsâ of the film included Poop cocktail supreme and Man vs. Ram (or dog, or bull, or snakes or bees) capture the spirit of the film which seems to start with Johnny Knoxville introducing and then injuring himself.
Now it might seem that I hated the film and I really didnât. To be honest, I think it is the kind of film best enjoyed with a bunch of friends and large amounts of alcohol. The problem with it is that it is a 20 minute programme, extended to an hour and a half and after about 30 minutes of this stuff you start to get a bit bored.
You canât fault them for trying to be original with their jackass-ery but there are only so many punches to the face or the genitals that you can really take before it all becomes a bit of a painful blur.
You need a strong stomach for some stunts although some barely class as stunts. A man painting his arse green, pretending to be a hill in a model railway and then projectile defecating isn’t really my idea of entertainment. In fact I wonder whom the audience for this is. It seems to be aimed at 15-year-old boys but bizarrely itâs rating makes that quite difficult â” It is rated R in the states.
As for the 3D, well for the most part it is pretty forgettable. When 3D works such as in AVATAR or TOY STORY 3, it immerses you in place and story. Quite frankly, the world of JACKASS isnât somewhere I particularly want to be immersed in.
If you like the series, youâll love this film. If you love 3D, avoid.
