Johnny Knoxville and the Jackass crew return for one final round of outrageous stunts, archival highlights, and physical comedy in Jackass: Best and Last, now available on Blu-ray.
Philip John Clapp, known to friends and family as PJ and professionally as Johnny Knoxville, was born 55 years ago in Tennessee (yup, you guessed it...Knoxville). When he was in his 20s, Clapp/Knoxville and his friends would record themselves performing idiotic stunts for laughs. Then, in 2000, they started performing said stunts for a television audience when Jackass found a home on MTV. For three short seasons between 2000 and 2001, Johnny (The Dukes of Hazzard) and his team, including Bam Margera (Haggard), Chris Pontius (Action Point), Dave England (The Bet), and Steve-O (Guest House), among others, entertained audiences with their brand of slapstick humor and physical stunts. One year later, the first Jackass film in the series was released, and almost a quarter of a century later, the final film in the franchise, Jackass: Best and Last, was released earlier this year. Now, the movie has been made available for purchase on Blu-ray.
When I spoke with Mr. Knoxville four years ago, I told him the next Jackass movie should be called Geriatric Jackass because they were all getting old. Well, here we are four years later, and they are even older and more broken than they were before. However, they are still up to their same antics that have caused multiple concussions and injuries over the years. Interestingly, I think we should really consider believing Johnny Knoxville when he says this is the last one because, unlike past films, this one includes archival footage from not only the previous films but also the MTV show. It seems the Jackass crew is really ready to hang up their stunts and move into the retirement village (to wreak havoc there next).
Fans of the show and the films will find new material to enjoy in Jackass: Best and Last, along with some of the "greatest hits" from their earliest days up to the most recent film from four years ago, and they will no doubt find it all funny as heck. There are archival bits that include Bam and the crew, and there are new stunts that bring a new cast member into the fold, which makes you wonder if this really is the "last" or if we will find ourselves watching another show/movie five or ten years down the line with a younger group of crazy individuals willing to do almost anything for a laugh. It will be interesting to see if the Jackass franchise gets a reboot at some time in the future.
The Blu-ray Disc is presented in 1080p resolution with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The video quality is mostly what you would expect from a Blu-ray, except when the older footage is shown. There, of course, we don't get such fine detail, precise coloring, or sharp images as we do from the most recent footage. However, there are some good moments visually, though I'm sure most audiences aren't necessarily buying and watching this movie for the technical aspects.
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is what one would expect, with, once again, newer footage sounding better than the stuff from the early 2000s. Granted, almost 25 years ago may not seem like a lot, but with technology, it may as well seem like a lifetime. The combo pack includes the Blu-ray Disc, the digital download, and one...yes, one measly extra. The extra is about 15 to 20 minutes of deleted scenes that are generally failed stunts.
I am not a Jackass fan, though, so I am not the intended audience. I did laugh a few times, and I did mostly enjoy the older footage, but I found many of the stunts stupid and boring, and a couple of them were genuinely just gross. I found myself gagging on more than one occasion and had to look away for fear I might have thrown up. There is no doubt that Knoxville and the team are crazy and humorous, and after speaking with him, I can say that Mr. Knoxville is an intelligent man, but this type of film just isn't for me.
By all means, go out and buy the combo pack if this is your sort of sense of humor, especially because Johnny assures us it will definitely be the last movie. I, however, will find other things to spend my money on.
Grade: C+
