By Fred Topel
Think what you want of Jackass. Its all those things. But, to its credit, it knows exactly what it is. This isnt one of those crappy reality shows pretending to be a game, or a quest to find talent. No, they know exactly what theyre doing pure exploitation. Now, some exploitation films pretend to have something else going on. That ruins the whole effect. To make an 85 minute movie with no pretense of plot or documentary journalism is the epitome of exploitation filmmaking, and its damn funny. Honestly, only about half the stunts in the movie are really laugh-inducing, but the whole thing is watchable because of the dumb glee these guys have as they do the ridiculous. On DVD, it goes further.
The highlight of the DVD is 30 minutes of additional footage, all of which is funnier than the bits in the movie. This must be a first in DVD history where the deleted scenes are not only as good as the movie, but theyre better. Returning a bloody sex toy to a porno shop, pole vaulting over a feces-filled canal, a ridiculously elaborate finale and yes, more Party Boy, are far more entertaining than shooting fireworks out of asses.
The outtakes reel is okay. People mess up their lines, but you know, the premise of Jackass is such that outtakes are actually less entertaining than seeing the bits work on their own merits.
The making of featurette produced by MTV is actually like its own collection of Jackass skits. While it tracks the making of the film, the guys mess with the camera crew, making this more than your average EPK style fluff piece. You also get to see some of the planning and attempted execution of various stunts, which is nice.
Now, the commentary tracks are where the real genius of Jackass takes center stage. Track number one is Johnny Knoxville, his cinematographer and his director. As they talk about how certain stunts were shot and prepared, you realize that a lot of careful planning goes into this. Its not just doing stupid stuff, its figuring out how to record the stupid stuff in a visually coherent fashion. This involves underwater photography and color correcting to make different cameras match. And come on, you did want to know how they make someone defecate on cue, right?
The second commentary track has all of the Jackass crew reminiscing about their stunts. Its a lot harder to follow, because they all just talk and throw out random comments. Within this, there are some memories of how the stunts were performed, including specifics about the sh*t skit. The Jackass nonsense doesnt work quite as well in audio only format, but youve already got one solid track, so heres a nonsense track to go along with it.
Another plus about the DVD is that the video segments are transferred right from video. When you saw them in the theater, they suffered from the film transfer. Now, it may just look like a video show, but thats what it is. It looks much better than the grainy washed out film transfer. Every shot is clear.
Finally, the thing I find most fascinating about Jackass is how resilient all of these guys are. They soak in waste, brutalize their bodies and vomit continuously, yet theyre all okay. None of them have fatal diseases or physical disabilities. Perhaps this testament to the strength of humanity is the true meaning of Jackass.
