Entertainment

Jackass Forever offers 'hit and miss moments of howling hilarity'

Jackass Forever: Johnny Knoxville, Ehren McGhehey, Preston Lacy, Sean 'Poopies' McInerny, Steve-O, Dave England, Wee Man, Dark Shark, Chris Pontius, Jasper and Nick Merlino
Jackass Forever: Johnny Knoxville, Ehren McGhehey, Preston Lacy, Sean 'Poopies' McInerny, Steve-O, Dave England, Wee Man, Dark Shark, Chris Pontius, Jasper and Nick Merlino Jackass Forever: Johnny Knoxville, Ehren McGhehey, Preston Lacy, Sean 'Poopies' McInerny, Steve-O, Dave England, Wee Man, Dark Shark, Chris Pontius, Jasper and Nick Merlino

JACKASS FOREVER (18, 96 mins) Comedy. Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Preston Lacy, Chris Pontius, Jason "Wee Man" Acuna, Dave England, Ehren McGhehey, Sean "Poopies" McInerney, Jasper Dolphin, Zach Holmes, Rachel Wolfson, Eric Manaka, Compston "Darkshark" Wilson. Director: Jeff Tremaine.

Released: February 4

IMITATION of the stunts and pranks in Jackass Forever would be the sincerest form of stupidity.

Twenty years on from the original ego-bruising, bone-crushing hurrah of Johnny Knoxville and the gang, the fourth madcap compilation of gross-out pratfalls and japes "performed by professionals" is prefaced by an obligatory legal disclaimer to not replicate any of the lunacy you see on screen.

Sadly, the MTV series Jackass and subsequent films have demonstrated that, in extreme cases, curiosity kills the copycats.

It has been almost a decade since Knoxville ran amok as disgraceful octogenarian Irving Zisman in Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa.

He reprises his impish alter ego for an ill-fated furniture shopping expedition with hidden cameras that promises more delight than it ultimately delivers.

Tellingly, by the end of Jackass Forever, directed by series regular Jeff Tremaine, the 50-year-old lead star's hair goes from brunette to silver.

He's also seriously injured reprising a close encounter with a charging bull, incurring a broken wrist, broken rib and a weekend stay in hospital with concussion.

Original cast members Steve-O, Preston Lacy, Chris Pontius, Jason 'Wee Man' Acuna, Dave England and Ehren McGhehey gamely revisit updated challenges like the bungee wedgie and a puerile attempt to ignite freshly expelled methane underwater.

They also endure new humiliations with a high degree of certainty that live animals could come into play at some point.

"I'm a vegetarian!" whimpers one of the crew after he is unceremoniously drenched in gallons of viscous porcine fluid.

A new generation excitedly grasps the Jackass nettle including former rapper Jasper Dolphin and his father Darkshark, actor Eric Manaka, stuntman Zach Holmes, professional surfer Sean 'Poopies' McInerney and stand-up comedian Rachel Wolfson.

The latter calmly redresses the series' glaring gender imbalance in the aptly named Scorpion Botox with a live arachnid plunging its stinger into her bottom lip.

When the creature tumbles off her face and on to her chest, she visibly panics and co-star Pontius hesitates to intervene.

"I can't take if off your boob unless you give me permission," he respectfully blathers.

Filming in a time of Covid sparks unexpected jeopardy.

Cameraman Lance Bangs and his strong gag reflex have made recurring cameos and when he begins to retch during a seemingly innocuous stunt, his body's natural response leaves him with more than egg over his securely masked face.

Like previous instalments, Jackass Forever is hit and miss, with moments of howling hilarity (an opening ode to Godzilla is glorious) offset by elaborate skits that fall painfully flat – the emphasis is on eye-watering pain for gung-ho participants.

With a nimble running time of 96 minutes, the endurance for us though is pleasantly tolerable.

Rating: 3/5