A hysterical sequel, 22 Jump Street brings back the clueless adult cops, but this time sends them to college where frat parties, football games, and open mic nights are the way of life.
I’ll admit, I didn’t think that I’d be watching two 21 Jump Street films in the same week. I had never really planned to watch the first one until I randomly decided to hit the play button. But 21 Jump Street was a lot of fun, and I had to find out if the sequel held up the the first. I have to tell you, I liked this one even more.
22 Jump Street brings back Schmidt and Jenko (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum), two adults who work on the police force and have just finished a special assignment with the 21 Jump Street unit to bring down a drug ring at a local high school. Now there is a new drug ring at the local college (how about that?), so, having just “graduated high school,” they go to college to try to infiltrate the bad guys.
You do not have to have seen the first film to watch this one. 22 Jump Street begins with a very quick recap of what happens in the first movie, and you really won’t miss anything if you start here. That said, there are some fun little Easter eggs thrown into this film for those people who have seen the first one.
Going into college, with Schmidt having had a great time going back to high school and Jenko having had to find his footing a little bit, Jenko is worried that he will have another challenging experience. But in this film, it is Jenko who finds a position on the college football team and a new crew to hang out with. But Schmidt develops an interest in another college student, which is okay this time because everyone is legal (there was a questionable crush in the first film!).
While 21 Jump Street is a little uneven and more heavily places the jokes in the first act, this one is consistently funny. The deputy at the police department gives another tongue-in-cheek speech (“Nobody gave a s**t about the Jump Street reboot when you first came on… but you guys got lucky.. So now this department has invested a lot of money to make sure Jump Street keeps going. We’ve doubled their budget. As if spending twice the money guaranteed twice the profit.”), and everything continues to live on this level of humor.
There is a fantastic montage of all of the goofy items that college kids buy (a bean bag chair, a shower caddy, a comforter that you never wash), and lots of nods to all of the “cool” things that college kids do, like wine parties, spoken word events, and recreational drugs. Speaking of which, there is a hilarious scene where both men inadvertently take the drug that they are seeking out. This happens in the first film too, but this trip is much more entertaining.
22 Jump Street is a really easy watch that will have you laughing a lot. Do yourself a favor and be sure to stay for the credits. There are some additional ideas for future sequels with cameos that you’re going to want to see.
Runtime: 112 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: R
Languages Spoken In The Film: English
Should You Watch It? Yes
Did I Cry? Nope
My Rating: 3.75/5 Stars
Available: To rent on Prime Video or may be available for free on other streaming platforms
I’ll admit, I didn’t think that I’d be watching two 21 Jump Street films in the same week. I had never really planned to watch the first one until I randomly decided to hit the play button. But 21 Jump Street was a lot of fun, and I had to find out if the sequel held up the the first. I have to tell you, I liked this one even more.
