21 Jump Street (2012)
Starring: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Brie Larson
21 Jump Street is a movie I had been looking forward since it came out in theaters. It's a remake/sequel/reboot of a largely forgotten 80s television series, and it stars Channing Tatum. Given those details, I wasn't expecting much in the way of quality when I first heard about it. But surprisingly, the movie got very solid reviews upon release (currently holding a very impressive 85% fresh rating over at Rotten Tomatoes), and became another hit for "C-Tates" in what was kind of a breakout year for him. Whenever a movie seemingly defies expectations like that, I'm interested to see it. I love it when a movie comes out of nowhere and becomes a hit, or at least a critical success. So I was very curious to see 21 Jump Street. And I wasn't disappointed at all. The humor can be a bit sophomoric at times to be certain, but I can enjoy a little gross-out humor as much as the next guy. And aside from that, 21 Jump Street, while not a revelation in anyway, is a very solid and entertaining comedy that does exactly what it wants to do, and well.
As essentially a buddy cop movie, the success of 21 Jump Street was always going to rely somewhat on the two stars, Tatum and Jonah Hill. The formula isn't new: 48 Hrs, Rush Hour, Lethal Weapon, they've all done it before. And the main reason those movies succeeded where other buddy cops failed was because of the chemistry and performance of the main characters. Luckily, Tatum and Hill have that chemistry. I don't think that Tatum is a great comedic actor (at least not based on what I saw in this movie), but he is likeable, charismatic, and lucky enough to be playing a role in this movie that (I'm guessing) isn't too far from his actual persona. Hill I've enjoyed before in Superbad as the loveable doofus, and he brings the same energy to 21 Jump Street. The two play off each other very well and I would actually be interested in a sequel to this movie, to see how they develop the two characters and their relationship (development that likely wouldn't happen, but I can wish).
21 Jump Street hit a home run in casting not only the main characters, but the supporting cast as well. There was really no one who stood out to me as being particular bad or unfunny in this movie. I was pleasantly surprised to see familiar faces like Nick Offerman, Ellie Kemper, and Chris Parnell pop in roles of various significance, and they were all very funny with the material they were given. Kemper in particular was hilarious as a somewhat bipolar teacher who is sexually infatuated with Channing Tatum's character. I have a feeling many people might not appreciate Ice Cube in this movie, but I actually thought he was very funny (the first time I have ever thought that I think, for the record). His police chief was sort of a winking nod to the types of stereotypical characters that often show up in these movies, and I thought it worked. That kind of meta humor is very prominent in 21 Jump Street, and one of the things I enjoyed the most about it. If you're going to make a movie like this in 2012, you shouldn't take yourself very seriously, and 21 Jump Street greatly succeeds in that respect. If you're looking for a light comedy that is entertaining without being insulting to your intelligence, and may actually surprise you with how smart it is at times, then I would highly recommend 21 Jump Street.
Verdict: 7/10
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