Review of 22 Jump Street (2014) by B-Rax — 29 Jun 2014

It's often stated that sequels never live up to the original; that doesn't necessarily apply to this one. In fact, in terms of plot, there is hardly a difference between the two. The plot is simple–the two hilarious undercover cops head back to collage to find and stop a drug ring that has surfaced at the school.

One thing that really stood out to me was how self-aware this film was, almost so much so, it becomes annoying. For example, it constantly referenced how sequels never live up to the first one, and how the plot between the two was the same.

Something that bothers me in the genre of comedy lately, is the stress factored into a film that is supposed to be relaxing to viewers and hold some good laughs. 22 Jump Street handled this really well, as it had some very funny scenes while some were exaggerated, over-the-top.

The movie seemed to reuse jokes and cliché ideas that were not very entertaining. Don’t get me wrong, 22 Jump Street is still hilarious, but expect the same kind of comedy as in the original. The chemistry between the two leads is great and carries the whole movie pretty well.

I felt like the run time was a bit long and could have been condensed to make a better movie. The pacing was a little off, almost awkward at times, where dead-time could have been filled with more laughs or simply left on the cutting room floor; this detracted from the overall film.

Unrealistic scenarious seemed to overwhelm the comedic aspect quite a bit. I have to say, I laughed my butt off.  Even though it wasn't the most creative comedy, it was simple, didn't require much thinking and let me just sit back and laugh.

If you do see this movie stay for the end credits because they’re a knee-slapper.