Hollywood loves to recycle popular TV series. And you have to wonder why, as they're usually big disappointments.
Classics like "The Flintstones" and "Wild Wild West" were mangled by studio stupidity, with filmmakers stripping out the original's creative soul and replacing it with bloated excess.
Still, not all TV-to-movie transfers reek. "The Fugitive," some of the "Star Trek" flicks, and the latest "Mission Impossible" successfully leapt to the big screen, preserving and protecting the source material's integrity.
Now add "21 Jump Street" to the short list. Yes, you read that right: "21 Jump Street," that awful-looking comedy with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum as undercover cops assigned to high school
so they can collar a drug supplier, is good. And that's not just passably good, mind you, but hilariously, laugh-till-it-hurts good.
In fact, the production could serve as a primer on the right way to do a TV-to-movie adaptation.
Hard to imagine, since the initial trailer makes it look like a train wreck. Certainly a retooling of the earnest late-'80s Fox series seemed like a dumb idea from the start. Why? Because the Stephen J. Cannell TV show relied so heavily on the charisma of its then relatively unknown lead, Johnny Depp. While "The Pirates of the Caribbean" star can pretty much pull off anything, even he can't halt the aging process to reprise a role he made quasi-famous way back when.
Even without him in the lead
-- he does make a surprising cameo of the best order -- this "Jump Street" charts a new course. From the odd pairing of the nerdish Schmidt (Hill of "Moneyball") with the hottie Jenko (Tatum of "The Vow") to its irreverent and raucous humor, "21 Jump Street" sets off fireworks by sticking to its guns.
Frankly, the setup, which played straight in TV land, begs for comedy. A squad of fresh-faced newbie cops working the teen beat smacks of "Hardy Boys" and "Nancy Drew," but with a badge and a brooding demeanor. Screenwriter Michael Bacall ("Scott Pilgrim vs. the World"), directors Phi Lord and Christopher Miller (the underrated "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs") and a dynamo cast are all in on the joke and have downplayed the drama to craft something clever.
Where they veer ever so slightly off the mark is when "Jump Street" shifts into action, as the drug-dealing plot turns darkly comic and the car chases and shoot-outs dominate in the final stretch. Even then, you can't help but admire the filmmaker's spunkiness and unpredictability as they thumb their noses at easy conventions and play to the R-rated crowd. But this is no cynical "Project X" shockfest. The humor comes from not only preposterous situations -- a "Peter Pan" performance gone awry, an all-guns-blazing prom night, a tussle with bikers -- but the well-written, fully drawn characters, all played by a top-notch cast.
As much as the film relies on an effusive, high-spirited script, it's the two leads that make it work.
The Hill-Tatum partnership couldn't be better. Hill, as the former uncool kid who gets his chance to finally hang with the in crowd, and Tatum as the dumb but endearing jock who learns what it's like to be a geeky outcast, rank up there with Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy as successful cop partners. Both actors served as executive producers, and their roles play to their strengths. Hill is a comic master, and Tatum is a pretty face who's agile with comedy.
The rest of the cast lend outstanding support, including a screamingly funny Ice Cube as the bellowing captain of the Jump Street organization, Dave Franco (James' brother) as the environmentally conscious teen drug dealer and Brie Larson ("United States of Tara") as Hill's sort-of love interest.
Definitely none of this is Proust or "Tree of Life," but who cares? It's a rowdy, massively entertaining ride done with wild wit and creative abandon. Now, bring on the sequel!
"21 Jump Street"
* * * ½
Rating: R (for crude and sexual content, pervasive language, drug material, teen drinking and some violence
Cast: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube, Dave Franco, Brie Larson
Directors: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Running time: 1 hour,
49 minutes
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