22 Jump Street Review

22 Jump Street Review: Can Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum catch lightening in a bottle...twice?

     Two years ago when "21 Jump Street" came out I wasn't exactly rushing to the theater to see it.  It was a pretty funny movie, but nothing revolutionary.  Two years and a number of hit movies later and Tatum and Hill are two of Hollywood's rising stars.  So does "22 Jump Street" help them continue their rise or does it diminish their glow by getting caught up in the lame sequel blues?

      "22 Jump Street" starts off not long after the last film in the series.  Tatum's character Jenko and Hill's character Schmidt are still partners, but now working outside of the Jump Street program.  Right off the bat the film does something that many people wish more films in Hollywood could do today...it doesn't take itself too seriously.  After a few jokes about how their new case was "Exactly like the case from the 21 Jump Street days", they continued to up the silliness factor when Tatum suggests perhaps they go undercover as Secret Service Agents to protect the White House, a great stab at "White House Down", his own film from 2013.  From that point on the movie literally parallels the first film with the guys rejoining the Jump Street program and going back to college rather than high school.  As before, they go undercover to find a drug dealer among the student body.  This time around Tatum ends up the popular guy and Hill ends up the unpopular one.  Even though the plot is very similar to the last film, "22 Jump Street" embraces that fact and continues to deliver some of the funniest one liners and situation comedy of the year. Hill and Tatum have quickly become two of the most versatile actors in Hollywood, Hill as the funnyman turned serious actor and Tatum as action hero turned funny man.  Together on screen they deliver plenty of laughs and hilarious situations.  This movie had me laughing from beginning to end and even as the credits rolled.

     So was it possible for Hill and Tatum to turn this blah sequel into a legitimate hit?  I believe it is.  The star power and comedy that this dynamic duo brings to the big screen is great.  The story line may be old and familiar, but the actors are able to pull out one laugh after another, which is what I look for in a comedy.  If you have seen "21 Jump Street" or even if you haven't and just love goofy films, this movie is worth seeing. As far as comedies go, this was a nonstop laughter.  I give this film a 4 out of 5 "comedy" stars.