Oh Jackass.
Love ‘em or hate ‘em these guys certainly have the market cornered on doing dumb shit and filming it. And honestly sometimes it feels good to just shut off the brain and watch people do stupid stuff. Lucky for us when filming these movies they film more than they could possibly ever use so they release a… umm… sequel? Straight to DVD movie? Extended deleted scene made into a movie? Commentary on creating the first one? Eh whatever Jackass 3.5 is it works.
The main movie follows the basic premise of Jackass 2.5. We see more skits that didn’t make it to the final cut with some commentary added by the cast. They reminisce and add context to the skits where the original just had skit after skit after skit. I actually find this a bit more enjoyable. If I wanted to see some random person getting hit in the nuts I can find millions of videos of that on Youtube. Granted I know the cast of Jackass through the show and previous films but having them on screen not trying to trump each other rather humanizes the cast and for whatever reason makes 3.5 that much more enjoyable. Also it’s just fun to hear how they come up with these ridiculous stunts.
As for the actual skits I found 3.5 a lot easier to digest than 3D. There weren’t as many gross-out gags (though there were a few) and they just seemed funnier. My personal favorite was barrel-surfing but only because it seemed like something me and my friends would do. The funniest part to me though was this elaborate prank Johnny Knoxville pulled where he set up an entirely different stunt only to show up with a mini helicopter armed with a paintball gun. It was over the top probably very expensive (there was a LOT of lube involved) and it didn’t even make it to the final movie. Gotta love it. And of course there are plenty of stunts that will have you laughing out loud whether you think you’re too good for this or not.
The bonus features are pretty thin but considering the whole deal is pretty much a bonus feature you can’t really complain. Deleted scenes are fun but you can see why they were deleted. Outtakes and a mini-doc on their European tour just confirms that these guys aren’t exactly putting on a show. This is how they live their lives. There’s also an interesting history of Jackass doc that traces the beginnings of the troupe. It’s nothing you wouldn’t learn doing a quick Google search but it’s worth it just to see the early footage. Also holy shit Jackass has been around for over a decade now. We’re old folks.
If you’re the kind of person who owns Jackass DVDs this isn’t one to skip over. If you’re the kind of person who simply enjoys Jackass you should definitely check it out. And if you’re the type of person who looks down on Jackass well this one won’t change your mind.
