"21 Jump Street" Review

Title: 21 Jump Street

Directed by: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller

Screenplay by: Michael Bacall

Year: 2012


Never did I think I would watch this film. It appeared to be a stupid comedy that easily amused the younger audience. But my friends and I were planning to go to the theaters one day and they all wanted to watch 22 Jump Street, this film's sequel. So, that very day, I watched 21 Jump Street before going to the theaters. And I'll say that I was pleasantly surprised...

21 Jump Street is the story of Morton Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Greg Jenko (Channing Tatum), two cops who have been given an undercover mission to pose as high schoolers and find the source of the spread of the drug known as HFS.

The plot is very simple but it works for this style of film. One of the main portions of the plot consists of our characters switching identities. So Schmidt (the "nerd" in high school) now hangs out with all the popular students and Jenko (the popular kid in high school) is now finding friendship with the science enthusiasts. Hill and Tatum share remarkable chemistry with each other. They bounce off of each other with incredible ease and I would be willing to wager that large portions of their dialogue were unscripted. Their chemistry really is that good and a definite high point of the film. They just seem to be having so much...fun.

The other characters of this movie are basic but get the job done. Brie Larson plays the love interest and Dave Franco plays the antagonist (of sorts), both to a passable degree. Ice Cube plays our protagonists' boss and it is easy to tell that he is loving his role as a bad mouthing, cynical, tough cop.

The direction of the film is good but nothing great or revolutionary. Much like the plot and minor characters, it gets the job done well, but cannot be considered a highlight. What is easily one of the best parts of the film is something that I had doubts about going into this film: the humor. This film had me laughing throughout its runtime. It's been a while since I've seen a comedy that has made me laugh as much. The mark of a good comedy in my eyes is one in which you cannot exactly pick a "funniest moment" because most were just about equally humorous. This film is an example. If you were to ask me what I thought the funniest moment was, I couldn't give you an exact answer because a few different moments would come to mind. Make no mistake, the humor and jokes are stupid...sometimes very stupid. Thankfully, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller know the type of film they are making and 21 Jump Street fully embraces what it really is and makes the most out of it. It's because the film knows what it wants to be that the comedy works and makes the audience laugh.

Something that really complements the film is its pacing. Sure, any comedy can have funny moments throughout its entirety, but it also has the task of progressing the plot and its characters. And, to my surprise, 21 Jump Street pulled this off really well. The movie never really slowed down, something that has become a staple in comedies in recent years. The humor, character development, and story all progressed equally and were given enough focus so as to leave the audience satisfied by the time the credits roll.

21 Jump Street is a surprisingly good comedy to say the least. Its lead actors share some of the best chemistry I have seen in a movie in quite some time. The pacing is on point and the film hardly ever loses track of itself or gets too caught up in a certain subplot. The humor, though stupid most of the time, will have you hooked. Just know what you're watching (much like how the film knows what it is) embrace it, and enjoy the laughs as they come. This isn't anything revolutionary, it won't change your life, but it's a good time.

Grade: B