Bad Grandpa

Though billed as “Jackass Presents…”, this is pretty much a one man show as Johnny Knoxville dons the make up to star as the 86 year old Irving Zisman. The loose plot has Zisman agreeing to drive his grandson (Billy) from Nebraska to North Carolina and drop him off with his real father. Of course, the plot is basically the MacGuffin that drives 90 minutes of jokes played out on the unsuspecting US public. Again this is also a break from the norm, as the usual MO is a mixture of duping the great unwashed and crazy stunts that the Jackass boys would undertake themselves, whereas here its pretty much just an extended episode of a hidden camera show. This is one of those odd films where unless you are already a fan of Jackass / Knoxville then you won’t be going in the first place. Is it any good though? In effect this is basically the fourth Jackass film and the law of diminishing returns is in full effect. However, if you like Knoxville’s brand of antics and humour then there’s enough cheap laughs here to keep you going. There is also some decent execution behind some of the larger pranks and despite showing up some of society’s odder creations (one person at a delivery company seems more than happy to help Knoxville post his grandson in a massive box) this actually shows a caring and humane side to the general public as they intervene whenever they can to protect Billy from his boorish Grandpa. People might be disappointed that Knoxville doesn’t really put himself in much danger throughout the film (no matter how much of an arse he behaves, no-ones going to punch an octogenarian), but I think its safe to say the guy deserves a break on that front. Kudos though to Greg Harris (as Billy’s father) who puts his well being on the line when acts up in a bar full of miffed bikers. Rating: 6/10.