The novelty of a dude pissing unwitting people off with overt expletives disguised as an old man wore pretty thin in the Jackass TV series – 90 minutes of that would have been agonising. Fortunately, Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa opts for more effective slapstick humour and antisocial absurdity that most of the unwitting participants have a good laugh over once the ruse is revealed (as seen in the credits).
In convincing-as-hell make-up that shames J. Edgar, Johnny Knoxville encapsulates 86-year-old horn-bag Irving. His adorably deplorable grandson Billy, played superbly by Jackson Nicoll, completes the simple grandfather-grandson bonding story. The loose narrative serves as a means to hop from one prank set-up to the next, using cleverly planned transitions to keep the public-prodding gags in context. In one standout scene, Irving attempts to bust a geriatric nut at an all-black strip club (during ladies’ night) while Billy wanders about other adult facilities asking the owners if they’ve seen his idiot grandpa. The quick quips from Knoxville and Nicoll help mine the golden reactions they get from the unwitting public, with the final two set pieces playing out better than anything scripted.
Occasionally, Bad Grandpa exposes the intriguing responses of passers-by that awkwardly shuffle out of confronting situations. It makes it all the more rewarding to see folks call Irving out on his irresponsible behaviour as a caregiver, but it’s only a mild exposé compared to Borat’s brilliant social spotlighting. The tight course of the plot also prevents the film from being as inventive as Jackass 3D’s cavalcade of creative crude comedy, striking a novel:tired gag ratio of about 3:2. But even if you completely forget the bingo hall skit or the snapper-with-a-shlong scene, you’ll cough out some second-hand chuckles reliving the moment Irving Pic-ass-o’ed the wall.
‘Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa’ Movie Times
