Or, if you’re watching this on a home rental disc as I did, just plain ol’ Jackass 3. Whether you add a third dimension or not, the content remains the same and most people are already converted or determined not to go anywhere near this series of stunt-packed movies.
Johnny Knoxville remains the charismatic leader but viewers get to spend time once more with the likes of Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, Chris Pontius, Steve-O, “Wee Man”, Dave England, Ehren McGhehey et al as the lads come up with more outrageous, more dangerous and more nauseating stunts to try out.
If you’re anything like me then you will laugh your backside off at skits like “midget bar fight” and “the high five” (the former being quite self-explanatory although the surreal extension of the whole situation is brilliant while the latter involves being people hit with great force by a giant, false hand). You may also, like myself, find yourself alternately laughing and cringing while you watch “Lamborghini tooth pull”. I can’t think of anyone who won’t be at least a little troubled while watching the “poo cocktail supreme”.
But that’s what these Jackasses do. They are the equivalent of the small child who wandered up to you once upon a time with a handful of the stuff it had managed to extricate from it’s nappy. Only these children are all supposed to be grown-ups by now.
Why I love the Jackass skits and movies is because of that innocent quality. They’re always up to mischief and often putting themselves in some danger but it’s all done with an endearing enthusiasm to just make others smile. The boys hit each other and torture group members in a variety of interesting ways but they rarely do anything malicious to members of the public (they get some priceless reactions from people but that stems from what they do to themselves).
This movie falls slightly short of the second outing, which fell slightly short of the first outing, and I guess that’s just the law of diminishing returns – I’m actually amazed that people came up with enough outlandish stunts to fill out all of the shows and the movies with so few duds.
I actually wish that I HAD seen Jackass 3D at the cinema because it’s actually a match made in heaven. Two cinematic fads that many have criticised since they first appeared merging to make the most of the gimmickry that they offer. Perhaps 3D was invented, way back when, just to reach it’s pinnacle in a scene where a man has a remote-control helicopter tied to his nether regions.
It’s not big, it’s not clever and it’s certainly not changing the face of cinema in anyway but if laughter is the best medicine then the Jackass lads are still the boys I want near me if I’m ever feeling a bit ill. They might not help but I’ll certainly be smiling through any pain.
Jackass 3D smashes onto shelves here in the UK on 14th March.
DIRECTOR: JEFF TREMAINE
STARS: JOHNNY KNOXVILLE, BAM MARGERA, STEVE-O, CHRIS PONTIUS
RUNTIME: 94 MINS APPROX
COUNTRY: USA/ROMANIA
Film Rating: 
