Jackass: The Movie (2002) Review

Jackass: The Movie (2002)

Jackass: The Movie follows Johnny Knoxville, who leads a crew of stuntmen, skateboarders and all-around lunatics as they prank, embarrass, and torture each other in the name of fun. 

From the ashes of the hit MTV show that joined the creators of Big Brother Magazine and CKY, Jackass: The Movie essentially served as an outlet to go bigger, badder, and way more raunchy. Even for it’s time, Jackass’ humor was and still is pretty selective, if you’re into the whole ‘people putting themselves through hilarious and disgusting hell for your own viewing pleasure’. It’s a very immature type of fun, and for this cast of misfits, it seems to work out nicely that they haven’t matured past the ripe age of 13, or else we probably wouldn’t have gotten 4 movies, multiple TV shows, and a load of other spinoffs that have capitalized on pain as a form of enjoyment.

What’s particularly wild is that for this first film, this is a huge leap from the things they were doing on the show, with loads of nudity, profanity, and silly shit, that somehow feels tame compared to what they would get into in later sequels, though that’s not to say there aren’t some very memorable skits. The ones that certainly stick out the most (and by proxy, leave you clutching your ribs) will always be when danger is highest, like the golf-cart derby and Johnny’s fight with Butterbean, though Dave shitting in a convenience store toilet and Ryan sticking the you car up his ass will always be hilarious classics. 

The chemistry here is undeniable, starring Preston Lacy, Dave England, Ehren McGhehey, Jason “Wee Man” Acuña, Ryan Dunn, Chris Pontius, Steve-O, Bam Margera, and Johnny Knoxville. For this first outing, it becomes very obvious why Knoxville would go on to be the face of this franchise, seemingly putting himself through every imaginable form of pain like it’s nothing, though some serious props go to Pontius and Steve-O for their willingness to always do the weird and risky stuff. 

Jackass: The Movie, directed by Jeff Tremaine,  is no doubt a disgusting, immature, and very ridiculous concept, but it’s one that thoroughly works with this exact group of people, who can always find laughter in the pain.

7.3/10