Name: Masand: '21 Jump Street' is both smart and stinky
Uploaded: 2012-04-20T23:53:43+05:30
Description: If movies were people, '21 Jump Street' would be the younger brother of 'The Hangover'.

Make A Dent

Live Blog

Cannes Diary

Cast: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube 
 
Director: Phil Lord, Chris Miller 
 
If movies were people, '21 Jump Street' would be the younger brother of 'The Hangover', both belonging to the same family of potty-mouthed comedies that are undeniably hilarious. But where 'The Hangover' was blazingly original and thrived on its outrageousness, this one takes a familiar set-up and turns it on its head with perceptive writing. 
 
Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are well cast as a pair of incompetent, baby-faced cops in their mid-twenties, who're sent undercover as high school students in order to crack a teenage drug ring. The joke here is the culture shock faced by our two heroes as they discover that high school has changed considerably since the ten-odd years they were last here... so much so, in fact, that the once-nerdish Schmidt (Hill) now fits in comfortably with the cool kids, while dumb-jock and prom king-prototype Jenko (Tatum) finds favor with the geeks he once tormented. 
 
Inspired from an Amercian TV series in the late 80s that launched the career of a certain Johnny Depp, the film borrows only the premise of undercover cops infiltrating a high school, but ditches the dramatic tone of the show for its own brand of raunchy, smutty humor complete with penis jokes, gay-bashing references, and recreational drug use among teens. 
 
The real pleasure lies is in watching the film's leads sportingly play off their own images. A slimmed-down Jonah Hill (who co-wrote the film) is terrific as the nerdish Schmidt, who's always had trouble talking to girls, and Tatum - who is the big surprise here - displays a flair for playing a bone-head. 
 
Together they strike up a winning chemistry and make for an endearingly likeable pair despite all their dirty banter. In one particularly hilarious scene, the two partners must shove their hands into each other's throats so they can puke up a drug they reluctantly consumed. 
 
'21 Jump Street' loses some of its steam in those tired car-chases and action scenes, although it does contain a clever running gag about explosions. Another gag in the film's climax, about a criminal who's shot in a delicate spot, turns a little too crude even for non-prudes. Nevertheless, for the most part it's a consistently filthy and funny film that benefits enormously from its first-rate cast, including Ice Cube as the profanity-spouting boss of our heroes, and an A-lister in a hilarious cameo. 
 
I'm going with three-and-a-half out of five for '21 Jump Street'. It's that rare adult comedy that's smart and stinky at the same time. Don't miss it. 
 
Rating: 3.5 / 5 
 
<a href='http://ibnlive.in.com/conversations/thread/241721.html' target='_blank'>Write your review and win prizes</a>

Masand: '21 Jump Street' is both smart and stinky

India

Deepika Padukone, Suhana Khan, Kriti Sanon, Ananya Panday, Bhumi Pednekar Among Best Dressed Celebrities This Week

Naatu Naatu-The Elephant Whisperers Oscar Wins, Release Of Zwigato, Deepika Padukone At Oscars Among Biggest Entertainment News This Week

Esha Gupta Slays Like A Boss Babe In Pink Pantsuit With Cleavage-baring White Top, See The Diva's Sexy Pictures

Alanna Panday Shares Dreamy Photos From Wedding To Ivor McCray, Bride Wears Manish Malhotra White Lehenga: See Inside Pics

Aahana Kumra Raises Temperature In Stylish Monokini, Check Out The Diva's Hottest Swimwear Looks

Malaika Arora, Deepika Padukone, Sara Ali Khan, Shriya Saran, Vaani Kapoor Among Celebrities Spotted Out And About

Kriti Sanon, Babil Khan, Uorfi Javed, Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal Bedazzle In Glamorous Black Outfits At Store Opening, See Pics

Vidya Balan, Jackie Shroff, Subhash Ghai, Boney Kapoor Among Celebrities At Madhuri Dixit's Late Mother's Prayer Service

If movies were people, '21 Jump Street' would be the younger brother of 'The Hangover'.

https://www.news18.com/india/amritpal-singh-news-live-updates-waris-punjab-de-khalistan-leader-arrest-police-livenews-7334575.html

https://www.news18.com/india/earthquake-tremors-felt-in-delhi-ncr-parts-of-north-india-7351249.html

https://www.news18.com/india/zakir-naik-to-be-deported-from-oman-sources-7346743.html

https://www.news18.com/india/india-logs-699-new-covid-cases-active-tally-climbs-to-6559-7344535.html

https://www.news18.com/india/delhi-latest-news-budget-2023-today-aap-centre-kejriwal-earthquake-deaths-pakistan-livenews-7352251.html

https://www.news18.com/news/india/bhiwani-deaths-forensic-report-confirms-charred-bodies-found-in-haryana-suv-of-2-kidnapped-muslim-men-7171921.html

https://www.news18.com/india/umesh-pal-murder-case-new-video-asad-atiq-ahmed-ashraf-supreme-court-encounter-plea-7313647.html

https://www.news18.com/news/india/ex-karnataka-cm-yediyurappas-dream-comes-true-with-pm-modi-all-set-to-inaugurate-shivamogga-airport-7170919.html

https://www.news18.com/news/india/pm-modi-98th-mann-ki-baat-speech-updates-assam-punjab-varanasi-7168747.html

Masand: '21 Jump Street' is both smart and stinky

TRENDING VIDEOS

TRENDING PHOTOS