Critics mostly agree that Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum's undercover cop comedy is 'a vibrant reboot of your rather forgettable '80s TV series.'
Where my laughs at?
We've been suffering through a far-too-serious start at the 2012 box office. The initial three-and-a-half months of the season are already dominated by weepy Watch 21 Jump Street Online dramas ("The Vow"), kid-friendly animated fare ("The Lorax"), middling horror flicks ("The Devil Inside") and films which should have kept geek flags across the country flying high but instead could barely inspire a gust of nerdy enthusiasm ("John Carter," "Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance"). The adventure-comedy "Journey 2: The Mystery Island" - #4, somehow, around the year's top-grossing-movies list - elicited more forehead-smacking guffaws than genuine belly laughs
Watch 21 Jump Street Free.
"21 Jump Street" is about to change all that. As our friends at NextMovie place it, Jonah Hill's new film could be the "first must-see comedy of the season." Nearly all critics agree, praising the movie's big laughs, star players and killer supporting performances. Please read on for a deep dive to the "21 Jump Street" reviews.
The storyplot
"Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum as novice cops who definitely are made to go undercover as high-school students to bust up a drug ring? Occur, that movie's likely to blow, right? But '21 Jump Street' doesn't blow - which could have been this movie's raunchy, self-deprecating tagline whether or not this didn't have already got several. '21 Jump Street' isn't a wild, fresh reinvention on the movie-clich?-spoofing genre - it's not 'Airplane!' we're speaking about - yet it's also not a drearily overfamiliar retread of computer." - Dana Stevens, Slate Watch 21 Jump Street Online
The Laughs
"A vibrant reboot of the rather forgettable '80s TV series sounds almost impossible to get off. And yet '21 Jump Street' accomplishes it which has a fresh script, flip humor and inspired casting. ... It's not a surprise that Hill, as bumbling officer Schmidt, generates numerous laughs. But who expect Tatum, since the dimwitted officer Jenko, to become so comical? More regularly cast being a standard heartthrob - not too long ago inside sappy 'The Vow' - Tatum holds his or her own with Hill every other comic actor within the film. Their chemistry is terrific." - Claudia Puig, USA Today
The Supporting Players
"Rob Riggle to be a blustery coach, Chris Parnell as a self-important drama teacher, Jake Johnson being a fed-up principal, Ellie Kemper like a science teacher while using hots and more for Jenko -- they're all about as hilarious as is possible while barely being there. With Jenko falling out in clumps with Schmidt, Schmidt falling for classmate Molly (the utterly adorable Brie Larson) and Capt. Dickson breathing down both of their necks, there are already a lot of hijinks to serve, and that's not really mentioning some cameos." - William Goss, Film.com
The Dissenters
"At times '21 Jump Street' seems sufficiently clever and sly to prevent the pitfalls that befall most movie adaptations of TV series. As a result of going, it mocks its own existence, its embrace of clich?s, and, indeed, the conceit at its heart. ... But directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller quickly abandon any pretense that they wish to puncture the silliness with the idea and, instead, embrace it. And then capitulation, the film becomes a hit-and-miss hodgepodge of plotting and jokes redolent at the very least as much of desperation adjusted inspiration." - Shawn Levy, The Oregonian
A final Word
" '21 Jump Street' admits from the start, in a very nicely timed and incredibly meta joke, it is really just an effort to mine the last for nostalgia and concepts -- in this case, adapting a somewhat beloved '80s Tv program about undercover cops in high school graduation. But that can be a could have been Sony's goal after they setup the movie with star and producer Jonah Hill, the film itself is a greater portion of reason to mix a surprisingly touching buddy story with wild, absurdist comedy.... Unpredictable and extremely silly but with real emotional stakes, '21 Jump Street' makes up for just a shaggy script with a wily, endearing strength that appears like definitely not a tired retread." - Katey Rich, Cinema Blend
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