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(MA15+) **
Director: Jeff Tremaine.
Cast: Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Steve-O, Ryan Dunn, Preston Lacy, Chris Pontius, Ehren McGhehey, Dave England, Jason "Wee Man" Acuña.
FIRST, a confession: I've not seen the first two Jackass movies. In fact, I've deliberately avoided the films and TV show after watching a few clips when it debuted back in the early '00s.
Watching the show felt like I was encouraging them in their random acts of idiocy and I didn't really want to encourage anyone to do something that results in puking or pain. But here we are, a decade on and I'm having to watch a Jackass movie. In 3D.
The main thing to say about this film is that if you've ever wanted to see someone vomit, urinate or defecate on a big screen in 3D, it's your lucky day. That should be warning enough to the rest of you, lest you decide to go and see Jackass 3D to find out what all the fuss is about.
There is little point in reviewing this. Fans of Johnny Knoxville and co's insane stunts - which almost always result in barfing, bruising or someone getting hit in the nuts - will lap this up. Those who think the idea of watching someone get bungeed up and down in an excrement-filled portaloo is about the lowest form of entertainment on the planet... well, you're not going to be lining up for a ticket, are you?
There are some admittedly funny moments and there is a certain appeal to living vicariously through these numbskulls and their version of America's Stupidest Home Videos, if only because you don't have to go out and do these things yourself (and you shouldn't). Ever wondered what would happen if you played tetherball with a hive of Africanised bees? Why shouldn't you rollerskate with buffalo? Can you pull someone's tooth out with a lambourghini? What happens if you throw a football into the airstream of a jet engine (and try to catch the ball)?
The pure slapstick of idiots being whacked with a giant high five or sitting at the top of huge pine tree when it gets cut down is funny, although some of the funniest bits come from some Candid Camera-style set-ups, including Wee Man getting in a bar brawl with some other vertically challenged folk or a simple gag where someone is asked to watch a man's dog while he goes into a shop.
The 3D doesn't seem to add a great deal to proceedings, except in the explosive intro and finale, although the vomit-inducing sequences do get ramped up another gut-wrenching notch with the extra dimension.
Fans are gonna love it, but you can't help but feel Knoxville, Bam and the boys are running out of ideas. After all, there's only so many times seeing someone get hit in the groin is funny.