I’m not going to sugar-coat it, when I first caught wind of 21 Jump Street, I wasn’t exactly thrilled, because not only has Hollywood continued to demonstrate its lack of originality by recycling material from the 80s, but I also didn’t have much faith in the leading men attached to the project. I know that from Haywire, to The Vow, to the upcoming G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Channing Tatum has been a consistent presence in theaters this year, but no one has ever described him as funny, so his placement in a raunchy comedy seemed a definite mismatch. As for Jonah Hill, I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been growing tired of his trademarked style of comedy, and while he did regain some of my confidence with his performance in Moneyball, The Sitter seemed to confirm that it was time for him to give the comedy genre a rest for a while. Needless to say, 21 Jump Street wasn’t high on my list of must-sees, but then I caught wind of the red-band trailer, and I found myself laughing much harder than ever expected…maybe this new comedy would be entertaining. Early critical reaction was through the roof, and word-of-mouth was equally strong, so with no other true adult comedies vying for audience attention, it looked like 21 Jump Street could be very successful.
Offering non-stop laughs that are offense, clever, and surprisingly self-aware, 21 Jump Street is the funniest film that I have seen in recent memory, one that showcases thoroughly engaging characters that you cannot help but love. As surprising as it may seem, Channing Tatum is actually hysterical and, together with Jonah Hill, the two make a heavyweight comedic duo that share a fraternal chemistry that makes them very-believable friends. In terms of the story, the script adds surprisingly deep and engaging elements by sending the characters back to high school and reversing their traditional roles, begging the question within each audience member as to how we would do things differently were we given a second chance as teenagers. When it comes to the action, 21 Jump Street has plenty of gunfights and explosions, but the film does a capable job of not taking itself too seriously, thereby creatively poking fun at the buddy-cop genre. Simply put, you will love 21 Jump Street, laugh uncontrollably, and eagerly await the sequel.
Overall Recommendation: Very High
