I completely forgot the feeling I get when watching a Jackass movie. That painful cringing, the writhing in my seat when I want to look away, but need to know what happens next. Then there are the multiple moments where I legitimately consider leaving the theater. But, of course I don’t. Well Jackass Prsents: bad Grandpa isn’t a true Jackass movie, but it’s pretty close. Johnny Knoxville returns to his crude old man role frequented throughout the series and the movie trilogy. But this time we get a story associated with him. Irving, the old man, is forced to take his grandson, played by Jackson Nicoll, across country to move in with his deadbeat dad.
The vast majority of the film is skits played out with Knoxville, Nicoll and normal citizens, who don’t know they are being filmed. Some scenes are just awkward like Nicoll telling a stranger on the street he is going to be his new father. Others are more uncomfortable as when Irving’s apparently dead wife falls out of her casket at her wake. Then there are the ones that cause the reactions I described above. How about Irving going to a male strip club and joining in the act? All three different types of skits are equally represented.
The story elements prove to be pretty weak. Early on they establish the premise for the movie, but any type of story arc is abandoned until the final act when all of a sudden an emotional context is forced on the audience. It comes across as completely out of place even though Johnny Knoxville shows that he actually is an actor, with the ability to do more than insult passers-by with insulting sexual innuendos. Nicoll is also decent, but he’s better in the improv situations than he is in the traditionally scripted segments. Bad Grandpa proves to be a worthy Jackass substitute, but it lacks the variety the previous films had.
Each film earns either zero, a half or a full arrow in five categories. The categories are Acting, Writing/Directing, Emotion, Innovation and Overall Impression. The arrows are added up to equal the full score.
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