They may be older, more weathered and in at least one case, a lot grayer. But the "Jackass" gang — that merry band of Gen-X rascals — has hardly lost a step.
"Jackass Forever," the group's fourth feature film and first since 2010's "Jackass 3D," is a riot of laughs amid a symphony of pain.
The delivery system hasn't changed a whole lot since "Jackass" first premiered on MTV in 2000: randy skate-type crew loves nothing more than subjecting themselves and each other to varying levels of unpleasant physical pranks, all in good fun and delivered with a laugh.
But there's still something oddly charming and appealing about the group and the way they interact with each other, and the amount of amusement they generate just by ribbing each other and acting like, well, jackasses.
To be sure, there's plenty of funny in stunts like "The Dum Dum Game," where participants are asked 4th-grade level trivia questions and are whacked in their groin area with a flip-flop if they answer incorrectly, or in "The Quiet Game," where the gang dresses like mimes and tries not to make any noise when forced to endure physical torment (a taser to the tongue, a snake bite to the face, etc.).
But the key to "Jackass Forever" — and to the entire "Jackass" franchise, really — is the reactions that follow, and the unbridled merriment among the group in the face of such disturbing behavior. There's a sheer, infectious joy in watching this crew crack themselves up to the point of tears while performing idiotic and often dangerous antics with and on one another. The bruises will eventually heal, but the brotherhood is forever.
Johnny Knoxville — his hair brown in the scenes filmed before the pandemic and sporting a full head of gray hair after — is once again the ringleader, and he's joined by a familiar cast of characters, including Steve-O, Wee Man, Chris Pontius, Preston Lacy and more. (Bam Margera, an OG member of the Jackass squad, was let go from the production midway through filming, but makes a brief appearance in the finished product.)
They're joined by a handful of newbies, including Zach Holmes, Rachel Wolfson — the first female member of Team Jackass — and Sean "Poopies" McInerney, and it's surprising it took this long for a guy nicknamed "Poopies" to join their ranks.
Director Jeff Tremaine doesn't employ any kind of narrative structure to act as a glue, it's just a series of vignettes strung together, many involving exposed male genitalia. So while it's definitely filmed entertainment, it may not be cinema by the standards of Martin Scorsese.
But Scorsese would no doubt appreciate the commitment to bits where Danger Ehren — the individual MVP of this production for the amount of agony he's put through — tests out a protective cup by having hockey pucks shot at his crotch by professional hockey player P. K. Subban, or when Steve-O and guest star Machine Gun Kelly race on a pair of poolside stationary bikes, trying to not get knocked off by a giant swinging hand.
Stupid? Sure. Hilarious? Definitely. And for the latter to be true, there has to be a likeability among the cast, and a level of investment from viewers. "Jackass" has it, and their chemistry as a group brings out the humanity in the hijinks. It's one of the reasons no one has truly followed in the wake of "Jackass": anyone can hit someone in the junk, but it's something else to make people care.
Because of that care, a pair of stunts late in the film go a step too far. In one, Ehren is covered in honey and salmon and strapped to a chair while a live bear is introduced into the room; it sounds like something Jigsaw might have concocted in one of the "Saw" movies, but even he had his limits.
In the other, Knoxville, 50, goes head to head with a live bull, one of several callbacks to early "Jackass" stunts, a sign that "Jackass Forever" may be putting a bow on the franchise. Back in the day, he walked away unharmed. This time he's strapped to a gurney and taken away in an ambulance, emerging with a broken wrist, a broken rib and a concussion.
It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, that's what Mom always said, and it's a hard reminder that while "Jackass" is forever, it's not worth dying for. So feel free to ride off into the sunset after this one, fellas. Your work here is done.
———
'JACKASS FOREVER'
Grade: B+
MPAA rating: R (for strong crude material and dangerous stunts, graphic nudity and language throughout)
Running time: 1:36
Where to watch: In theaters Friday
———
