I have never seen the original 21 Jump Street, the 80s TV series about youthful-appearing cops who investigate crimes by going undercover among the teens in high schools and colleges. The series is perhaps most famous for launching Johnny Depp's career and garnering him teen idol status, but it is now 2012, which means it is well due for a Hollywood remake. And what a remake it is.
Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum team up in this version as two guys who went to high school together and later cross paths in the police academy. Hill plays Morton Schmidt, the nerdy fat kid who never got a date and miserably made his way through high school, while Tatum plays stereotypical dumb jock Greg Jenko who got all the girls and the glory. Now in the academy, the two form an unlikely friendship, where Schmidt helps Jenko pass the written tests, while Jenko puts Schmidt through some rigorous physical training so that he can get through the obstacle courses and other athletic tests without passing out. Once they graduate from the academy, they find themselves incapable of arresting any criminals as they bike around town and quickly develop a reputation as a goofy and incompetent duo. After they make an arrest, only to have it go horribly wrong, their captain (the always fantastic Nick Offerman, in a much too brief cameo) assigns them to the 21 Jump Street division, for no other reason than that they look young enough to pass for high schoolers.
The duo are asked to go undercover at their old high school to find out who is responsible for supplying a new synthetic drug that seems poised to spread to other high schools in the area. They move in with Schmidt's parents and pretend to be brothers. But once they return to high school, they discover that the place they left 10 years ago has become very different. Jenko is befuddled to find that the cool kids now advocate for tolerance and environmental protection, a shift in attitudes that he blames on Glee. In this setting, Schmidt gradually becomes the popular kid, thereby letting him live out the fantasy of the high school life he wished he had, while Jenko is increasingly frustrated and relegated to the sidelines.
The movie proceeds with plenty of jokes, pop culture references, R-rated wackiness, and self-referential mockery, which is really what saves it from becoming just another remake. This is not a serious homage to the original 21 Jump Street. Instead, it is a clever send-up of the show's premise that goes out of its way to not take itself seriously. There are some great comic performances from people like Rob Riggle, Jake Johnson, and Ellie Kemper to liven up the proceedings, but the central relationship between Schmidt and Jenko is really at the heart of the movie and keeps it warm and sweet despite the ridiculous events that transpire. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are two actors who are impossible to hate, no matter what you think of their actual acting ability, and their good humor and willingness to just go for it are what keeps this movie so entertaining.
When I started watching the movie, I was expecting a particular cameo performance. However, I soon forgot about it, which then led to my being extremely surprised and delighted when the cameo did take place towards the end. No spoilers, but it's another thing that lends a sense of fun to the whole enterprise. In my opinion, Hollywood should take note of 21 Jump Street. If studios are going to continue to churn out remakes, this is the perfect way to go about it. Have fun with the source material and make it gloriously uninhibited and silly. That's the only way to get something that feels fresh and funny out of something that was doomed to become a musty relic of the 80s.
Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum team up in this version as two guys who went to high school together and later cross paths in the police academy. Hill plays Morton Schmidt, the nerdy fat kid who never got a date and miserably made his way through high school, while Tatum plays stereotypical dumb jock Greg Jenko who got all the girls and the glory. Now in the academy, the two form an unlikely friendship, where Schmidt helps Jenko pass the written tests, while Jenko puts Schmidt through some rigorous physical training so that he can get through the obstacle courses and other athletic tests without passing out. Once they graduate from the academy, they find themselves incapable of arresting any criminals as they bike around town and quickly develop a reputation as a goofy and incompetent duo. After they make an arrest, only to have it go horribly wrong, their captain (the always fantastic Nick Offerman, in a much too brief cameo) assigns them to the 21 Jump Street division, for no other reason than that they look young enough to pass for high schoolers.
The duo are asked to go undercover at their old high school to find out who is responsible for supplying a new synthetic drug that seems poised to spread to other high schools in the area. They move in with Schmidt's parents and pretend to be brothers. But once they return to high school, they discover that the place they left 10 years ago has become very different. Jenko is befuddled to find that the cool kids now advocate for tolerance and environmental protection, a shift in attitudes that he blames on Glee. In this setting, Schmidt gradually becomes the popular kid, thereby letting him live out the fantasy of the high school life he wished he had, while Jenko is increasingly frustrated and relegated to the sidelines.
The movie proceeds with plenty of jokes, pop culture references, R-rated wackiness, and self-referential mockery, which is really what saves it from becoming just another remake. This is not a serious homage to the original 21 Jump Street. Instead, it is a clever send-up of the show's premise that goes out of its way to not take itself seriously. There are some great comic performances from people like Rob Riggle, Jake Johnson, and Ellie Kemper to liven up the proceedings, but the central relationship between Schmidt and Jenko is really at the heart of the movie and keeps it warm and sweet despite the ridiculous events that transpire. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are two actors who are impossible to hate, no matter what you think of their actual acting ability, and their good humor and willingness to just go for it are what keeps this movie so entertaining.
When I started watching the movie, I was expecting a particular cameo performance. However, I soon forgot about it, which then led to my being extremely surprised and delighted when the cameo did take place towards the end. No spoilers, but it's another thing that lends a sense of fun to the whole enterprise. In my opinion, Hollywood should take note of 21 Jump Street. If studios are going to continue to churn out remakes, this is the perfect way to go about it. Have fun with the source material and make it gloriously uninhibited and silly. That's the only way to get something that feels fresh and funny out of something that was doomed to become a musty relic of the 80s.
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