When the credits finally roll at the end of “Jackass Number Two,” the vomiting camera men are thankful for being behind the camera, and the stars are terrified of a trilogy. After the snake bites, rocket bikes, fecal matter and broken boundaries, Bam Margera cries and Johnny Knoxville almost dies. The audience, nursing their nausea or in fits of laughter, leave exhausted and relieved.
The film’s two disclaimers, warning children against imitating the gross and barbarous behavior, do little to prepare for the experience. You will watch body parts that no person should see savaged in ways you hoped were impossible. The puerile and filthy humor is unrelenting. You will find yourself wishing desperately to look away, but for some reason your gaze is fixed.
There is something mesmerizing about aging adults acting like suicidal preteens.
To many, the debased morals and insane stunts of “Jackass Number Two,” and their widespread popularity, are symptoms of a degenerating American media, the newest and most obscene installment in a continuing and unfortunate trend spanning from Elvis to Eminem.
But there is something more to “Jackass” than its obscenity, which is constant and perverse. In the same way it symbolizes the immorality and immaturity of American culture, it also represents the beauty of the “rags to riches” American dream. The stars and creators have evolved from humble and anonymous middle-class pranksters to superstardom. Johnny Knoxville, a creator of the franchise and its most steadfast star, recently starred in “The Ringer” (2005). Spike Jonze, another creator, directed “Adaptation” (2002) and was nominated for an Oscar for his work on “Being John Malkovich” (1999). Bam Margera has come far since his pranks on CKY2K (Camp Kill Yourself 2000), appearing several times on MTV’s Cribs and even getting his own MTV show, Viva la Bam, in 2003.
The other stars are all well paid, intoxicated, and seem to be having fun. Few actors in Hollywood are more deserving of their money. When staring down a 10-foot anaconda, or lake- jumping on a giant red rocket, the notion of “sink or swim” has never been clearer.
But by the end, the pain and shame of their actions have come down hard on the crew. Every star, with the exception of Johnny Knoxville, vomits or cries at least once. As the biggest badass of the “Jackass” crew, Knoxville is the exception. While blindfolded, he gets rammed and tossed by a bull and never loses the cigarette from his lips. But even he didn’t escape the film unscathed; he got knocked out three times during production.
More than once, the stars denounce the possibility of a third “Jackass,” and midway through, Bam Margera regrets starting a second. If you need to fill your appetite for bodily fluids, injuries and insanity, “Jackass Number Two” might be your last chance.
Though the film is often uncomfortable for all involved – cast, crew and audience – “Jackass Number Two” ultimately emerges as the feel-good movie of the year. All parties leave happy. The cast and crew look forward to less dangerous and disgusting careers in the future, as well as incredible box office success. The audience is happy it wasn’t their jackass ravaged on screen and that this might be the last time to see such reckless behavior. Even the horse is satisfied.
But forget the horse for now. If you decide to watch the movie, you’ll puke off that bridge when you come to it.