Review: 22 Jump Street

Review: 22 Jump Street (2014)

Directors: Christopher Miller and Phil Lord

Principal Cast Members: Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill and Ice Cube

It would be fair to say that Christopher Miller and Phil Lord are quickly becoming the lords of Comedy cinema (I make no apologies for the pun!!). After hitting all the right spots in the early months of 2014 with The Lego Movie in which everything was awesome, they have quickly moved on to following up their 2012 sleeper hit 21 Jump Street making it two major releases in less then 6 months. While the first movie was self aware in parts, 22 Jump Street racks that up creating a whole film that revels in the fact that sequels always follow the same pattern and are nearly always worse, and in doing so have made sure their film is a rare comedy sequel that is actually funnier then what has gone before. Like they promise throughout the narrative in terms of narrative we gets almost a compete rerun of what has gone before, but when the jokes are this good no one really cares. While as to be expected with the number of jokes on show some don't work but thankfully more then enough work really well, from in jokes about a certain cast members name to big elaborate set pieces. But what really sells the film is what made the first film a joy, the central relationship between Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill. While it could be argued that Hill is putting in the typical comedy performance you'd expect from him, Tatum revels in his new found comedy abilities and when both are one screen together they sizzle with chemistry. Another plus is the increased role for Ice Cube this time around, who often threatens to steal the film away from the Tatum/Hill pairing but it's a scene featuring all the trio that receives the biggest laughs. Impressively 22 Jump Street keeps it predecessors ability to stay fresh on repeat viewings and has put in a very strong case to be 2014's top comedy. Oh and stick around for the superb credits.