Jackass: Number Two (2006)
Himself: Johnny Knoxville
Himself: Bam Margera
Steve-O: Steve Glover
Himself: Chris Pontius
Himself: Ryan Dunn
Himself: Dave England
"Danger" Ehren: Ehren McGhehey
Wee Man: Jason Acuña
Himself: Preston Lacy
Himself: Phil Margera
Herself: April Margera
Himself: Brandon Dicamillo
Himself: Jay Chandrasekhar
Himself: Rip Taylor
Paramount Pictures presents a film written by Sean Cliver and Preston Lacy and directed by Jeff Tremaine.
Running time: 95 minutes.
Rated R for extremely crude and dangerous stunts throughout, sexual content, nudity and language.
Release Date: September 22, 2006
Review Date: September 26, 2006
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The day that the highly inappropriate and borderline homoerotic antics of the cast of Jackass are no longer funny to me is likely the same day I have lost my sense of humor. Jackass: Number Two, much like the motion picture and much-too-short-lived television series that preceeded it, is proof that if you give this group enough beer and enough time to think up horrible stuff to do to each other, they will make you laugh. A lot. More than is healthy.
Of course, there really isn't a plot to this whole thing - but kudos to the group for tossing in grand opening and closing numbers to make it feel like an actual motion picture. I do think when the motion picture show was invented in the nineteenth century, I don't think the intent was for it to host a festival of blood, feces, male nudity, and pain. But aren't we all glad that that's happened?
The sheer brilliance of this franchise is that it's almost too funny. Unlike other comedies, you don't have to wait for any set-ups or take any time off for character development. Odds are, if you're walking into Jackass: Number Two, you know the cast and crew and what they're going to do. That knowledge leaves the entire running time to be left for the laugh-a-minute stunts that have been synonymous with the term Jackass since the turn of the century. Much like the first one, I may have never laughed as hard or as often as I did watching this movie.
And the amazing thing that I keep thinking about is that the character development with this franchise might actually be better than with many other film franchises. Would the crowd shudder and feel remorse for the star of the film if someone in Pirates of the Caribbean, for example, stuck a fish hook in his mouth and let his friend go fishing for sharks? When Chris Pontius jams a fishhook through the mouth of Steve-O, everyone shook their head a little - and then laughed when a shark tried to eat Steve-O fifteen seconds later. I don't think any other film can get that kind of range of emotion from its audience, or at least no film that I've seen.
If you're looking to be entertained for a little while, head into the theater and spend a few bucks on a ticket to Jackass: Number Two. Make sure to avoid the concessions, though, because even if you aren't weak of stomach, you're likely to spill all your popcorn everywhere from laughing so hard. Here's to letting these guys keep entertaining audiences until they end up finally killing each other.
**** (out of ****)