It’s been a long ten years since the world has been subjected to a new Jackass movie, but Johnny Knoxville and company have decided it’s time. Most know the franchise well and will come out in droves to see a lot of grown men (and now one woman) play prank after prank on each other just for the laughs. These, however, are not the typical tricks of hiding behind a doorway and yelling boo, as evident by the many disclaimers before and after the show to not attempt any of the stunts at home.
The group has enough OG cast, mixed in with some new faces, and plenty of celebrity cameos, and no one seems to be off limits for the smacking, electrical shocking, and abuse heaped on everyone and anyone within camera shot (even the camera folk at times as well!). Viewers will be overjoyed to see Rob Drydek, Tyler the Creator, Tony Hawk, Eric André, and Colson Baker (better known as Machine Gun Kelly) round out the celebrity cast.
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Originals are Steve O, Wee Man (Jason Acuña), Chris Pontius, Dave England, Ehren McGhehey, Preston Lacy, and of course Johnny Knoxville, who somehow seems to still be the instigator of everyone and everything to do with inflicting pain on this group for fun. Newcomers are Sean “Poopies” McInerney, Zach Holmes, Jasper Dolphin, with his father, nicknamed “Darkshark” Wilson, Eric Manaka, and the first ever female cast member Rachel Wolfson. Wolfson is only in a few stunts but seems to hold her own with the boys taking the pain from a taser to the tongue and being subjected to quite a few scorpion bites.
This movie will not disappoint if the viewer is expecting the usual stunts, wild pranks, and various ways of taking a hit to the nuts. And there is plenty of it in this go round, so much so that one might wonder if any of these men have been able to procreate with all the damage they have inflicted on their manhood. If seeing men naked is disturbing, best to avoid this flick. There are an alarming number of penises displayed throughout the entire film. And this crew is wildly inventive with the ways they come up with to bring grown men to their knees.
While the opening credits are a cinematic piece of genius, with a Godzilla-like creature slowly destroying a city and in turn all the crew in the movie in various types of horrific ways, viewers not accustomed to the antics of the Jackass group will be appalled at what they are really watching on the big screen. Those fans that are familiar with the show will be pleasantly delighted that somehow Johnny Knoxville manages to outdo himself even after a ten year hiatus. Scorpions, snakes, bears, bees, spiders, and a very angry bull are the live creatures used in some of the stunts, as well as Danielle O’Toole, a softball pro pitcher, and Canadian hockey player P.K. Subban, doing what he does best, launching slapshots, at – well, one can only imagine.
The greatest thing Jackass Forever does is pull its infamous bait and switch with cast members, tricking them into thinking they are being subjected to one form of torture but really there is a much worse prank about to unfold. One such scene involves a deadly snake, a room, and lights that can’t seem to stay on. Even if someone manages to find a door to escape the darkened room, they are in for an even bigger surprise, and with that surprise always comes pain.
This movie is laugh out loud funny with the antics this group is famous for performing, and yet somehow keeps it fresh and new at the same time. It also captures the nostalgia of previous movies, with stunts and tricks performed with a split screen to remind viewers exactly how long this franchise has been around. Even Knoxville himself, who may be the ringleader but is strangely left out of the pain of most of the stunts, ends the movie with one of his most famous bits, a bout with a bull, which does not end well for the actor, which is really what the show is all about, treating their bodies like rag dolls and inflicting harm onto themselves to entertain the audience.
Why do these people subject themselves to such ridiculousness and excruciating pain? Hard to say, but if you can suspend reality for 90 minutes, and not worry that most of these stunts had to end with an ER visit, this movie is wildly entertaining, and its ridiculousness will definitely have viewers in stiches.
Jackass Forever is out now in cinemas.
