Jackass 3

How does one review "Jackass 3D"? The tertiary installment in MTV's prank and stunt franchise is basically immune to criticism because you get exactly what you pay for. Love it or hate it, "Jackass 3D" accomplishes just about everything it sets out to; in effect, Johnny Knoxville scores a goal on an empty net.

I am the anomaly, but I'd wager next to no one is 'on the fence' about whether or not they should see this film. They either contributed to the massive $50 million opening weekend box office cume, or they immediately dismissed it. In my case, however, having never seen the "Jackass" films wasn't a conscious snub. Believe it or not, there just always seemed to be something better to watch.

But mine's not a high horse. I sought out and watched "Jackass" and "Jackass: Number Two" the week prior to my first theater experience with the series, and I'm glad I did. After all, I grew up on "America's Funniest Home Videos" and throughout high school religiously followed the English hidden camera show "Trigger Happy TV." "Jackass" is not as clever as the latter, but by measure of unbridled chutzpah, Knoxville and Co. are the reigning kings.

Like a Victorian freak show or museum of oddities, the often self-destructive experiments of the "Jackass" crew are the guilty pleasures of our generation. There's something almost gladiatorial about watching the elaborate dangers these brave idiots subject themselves to. Man vs. bull, man vs. mule, man vs. man—our fascination with competition, spectacle, and injury is nothing new.

"Jackass 3D" being my first chance to observe others' response to these shenanigans, I was most amazed by the two-pronged reaction the audience had to the physical trauma the performers sustained. A given stunt would be executed, typically resulting in its participant doubling over in pain. The crowd laughed, as they'd been cued to. The film would then play back the moment in slow motion and suddenly everyone would groan or sharply inhale. Though we paid to laugh at people injuring themselves, what's more interesting is our ability to empathize with the depiction of human pain. That the "Jackass" films achieve both is not an insignificant feat.

This isn't the definitive "Jackass" experience, however. Having watched all three films in the span of a single week, I did discern a distinct arc that left me somewhat letdown with Knoxville's most recent effort. "Jackass: Number Two" improved upon the original with a more polished, professional look, and more elaborate and inventive stunts. It gave the genuine impression that the crew was pushing its boundaries and trumping itself wherever possible. That same sense of pioneering is largely missing from "Jackass 3D." The glasses- gimmick seems to supplant genuine innovation in their routine, and on the whole it feels slapdash in comparison to the conceptual genius of its prequel.

But what survives in "Jackass 3D," and what ultimately endeared me to the franchise is its creativity. Where it won me over was not in the painful payoff of each trick, but rather in the setup. The use of the camera to disorient, spotlight, and surprise is what really makes the series sing, and the trilogy is full of epiphanic moments of hilarity. "Jackass" has and always will be a potpourri of comedic elements, not all of which directly appeal to my specific sensibilities, but the variety is essential and the whole is somehow more than the sum of its parts.

I only wish "Jackass 3D" had more of the entrepreneurial spirit that so distinguished the second film. It may not be ambitious, but hey, a goal made on an empty net still counts.

Jackass 3D is the latest from the group and as the title suggests, it's in 3D. Stunning 3D if I dare say so. No matter how old I get I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching these brave men launch various objects at their genitalia and ignite a wide variety of explosives while standing far too close for comfort.

I'm sure most of you have seen the trailer so I don't have to go into the stunts and pranks performed in the film, but what I will talk about is how amazing the film looks. 3D has been reserved for large scale action films and animated features. Here is essentially a documentary being shot in 3D, the first of its kind (though Werner Herzog's upcoming documentary Caves utilizes 3D technology as well).

The compositions on screen are so bizarre yet so simple. They make the most immature acts a work of art. Rather than finding out the harmful effects of being stunned by a stun gun or cattle prod, they turn it into an event whereby several members of the group run through a hallways with various types of these devices hanging in the air.

These daredevils or "trained professionals," as they disclaim in opening credits, have gone from punk rebels to cultural icons. Their outlandish pranks and inconceivable stunts are a testament to our society's consumption of the obscene and the absurd. We watch these hooligans abuse themselves for our enjoyment. We laugh at their pain. The only reason we laugh is because we aren't the ones feeling their pain.

What really makes this film funny is the groups approach to their work. I can imagine how many takes of each segment introduction their must be. The men are either dying from laughter at what is about to unfold, or they can hardly keep their composure for fear that this next stunt will be their last. Regardless, we get a sense that what we are seeing on camera is what these people are really like. They laugh, scream, and gasp for air like we would, though perhaps with a little more courage.

This carefree approach comes through in the production as well. The melding of the crew with the cast is like watching a dysfunctional family's home videos. The cameras capture the action both with the cast and behind the scenes with the crew. It's a fun, slightly off atmosphere. To help create this atmosphere, we are fortunate enough to listen to a great selection of songs, my favorite being Roger Miller's "You Can't Roller Skate in a Buffalo Herd," played over Johnny Knoxville being chased after by a herd of buffalo. Oh yeah, he's also wearing roller skates. How fitting.

I don't think I need to tell you all this, but this film isn't for everyone. I can think of several scenes which some will find offensive, others will find revolting, and maybe a few of you will deem as unfit for human eyes. Still, those who are fans of the show or if you're looking for something new, look no further. This film is a raunchy, laugh riot.

I find it hard to imaging that there are many people who stumble across a film called 'Jackass 3D,' not knowing what 'Jackass' is all about. Then they put the film on, watch it to the end and thus hate every moment of it and are disgusted by what they just watched.

However, in case you're thinking that 'Jackass' is merely a mildly offensive term for someone who is a 'little bit silly,' then you really need to swat up on your pop culture. I believe it started out on a cable channel as one of those ridiculously over-the-top late night shows that gains a cult following for all the wrong reasons. Basically, the premise is a bunch of men hurt each other. No, this is not 'scripted' in the traditional sense. It's literally a bunch of guys coming up with weird and imaginative ways to hurt and humiliate each other (and sometimes unsuspecting members of the public or their family).

If you're therefore thinking of something vaguely clever or surreal (ala 'Triggerhappy TV') then you're wildly off course. There is nothing clever about 'Jackass' and there never will be. It's pure 'shock TV' and, if that's your thing, then you'll have a blast with this film.

Naturally, there's no story. It's just one wacky clip after the next of guys doing painful and disgusting 'stunts' (or 'pranks,' depending on who you ask). Again, if you like that sort of thing then you'll enjoy the film.

If you're in two minds about whether to watch this (or any of the 'Jackass' films or TV) then I'm sure you can find many a clip on the internet. Watch it then decide if it's for you. Trust me... it'll save you an hour and a half of watching grown men pull each other's teeth out with sports cars and sitting in a port-a-loo (full of human 'you-know-what') and then getting jettisoned high into the air, making the *ahem* 'brown stuff' go all over the man entombed within. Yes, that actually happens.

This sequel in the 'Jackass' franchise is 3D. I didn't watch it in the cinema using glasses, only at home on the telly, so I can't really tell how much the 3D adds to the effect. Either way, it's pretty disgusting. But, at the end of the day, I'm almost ashamed to admit that I enjoyed this film (and the previous two). No, I don't watch them often, but, if I'm in the mood for something so low brow that I can almost feel the IQ points diminishing as the runtime progresses, then this is it.

In 1928, Charlie Chaplin wowed audiences by appearing on screen with a real, live lion for his celebrated film The Circus. A lion! Real! On screen! Audiences were mesmerized by this fascinating new art of cinema, an art made all the more engaging for the fact that the plastics of its image had roots in reality; that somewhere else in space and time, Chaplin had actually stood next to this lion and the reality of this image was now available to them for their own viewing pleasure.

For a contemporary equivalent, I give you Steve-O launched through the stratosphere in a PortaPotty full of dog poop. In 3D.

Jackass 3D appeals to cinema's time-honored capacity for ontological testament, and makes an equally compelling case for the camera's potency as an empathy machine: We see the setup of a stunt, we endure its execution, and we then either clutch our balls or puke in our mouths, depending on what the stunt entails. Cinema is reality, and their pain is ours.

Jackass isn't simply effective in the art of its performers, however, as there is a genius to the framing and editing of each segment as well. Many of the film's laughs are built in to its premises, and the crew smartly eschews over-explanation. We see a tee ball, we see the path this ball is on track to take, and we see Steve-O's nuts--as an intelligent and discerning audience, it is left to us to piece together the narrative before it unfolds, resulting in our increased engagement and a far greater potential for humor upon realization. And we then hang in that moment of anticipation, until the situation's potential energy is quickly and cathartically rendered kinetic.

Jackass 3D is notable as well for its use of stereoscopic 3D cinematography. In one scene, Johnny Knoxville fires a projectile toward the screen in slow motion to great effect: shallow depth of field slowly reveals this item to be a dildo, and 3D reveals the dildo to be humorously close to your face. Elsewhere, stereoscopy is employed in the service of some truly excellent model work; the scene's genuine beauty makes its ultimate subversion all the more effective.

Needless to say, Jackass 3D will not appeal to everyone. But as the film so effectively marries the ontology of outrageous stupidity to so many facets of cinematic expression, it's definitely worth seeing if you think you can stomach it. TK 10/17/10

Jackass 3D is at the time of me writing this, the last movie made by the Jackass crew, the group of Morons who charmed the world by doing painful, gross and stupid stunts to entertain an audience. Jackass the movie is a long episode of the show, Jackass number 2 raises expectations by being a bit more wacky and toony and including the best Climax and opening of the series, but 3D is not only the funniest, but also the one that really pushes the limits of stupidity, chaos and grosseness, this is Jackass at their most Ridiculous...and i kinda liked it.

I didn't watched Jackass itself until 2 years ago, where i fell in love with how creatively and insane some of their stuff were, it's not high quality entertainment, but there is something oddly charming about this group of morons, and 3D pushes those morons into their most painful stuff yet.

The best way to describe this movie is as a live action 90's cartoon, chaotic, loud, colorful, gross and violent. The highlights for me are the more ingenious stunts that include 3 or the whole crew, like the Jet, Electric Avenue and the Ram Jam. But it does contain probably the smallest and probably one of my favorite stunts, the snake river redemption, not for the Stunt itself, but the interactions between the group and Wee Man on a leprechaun outfit.

This movie is ridicolous, gross, if you don't have a taste for those kind of movies, you are gonna hate it. But if you enjoy a good laugh, even for how gross it can be, watch it, it's a good movie! Disgusting but Good!