Movie Review: 21 Jump Street
21 Jump Street is the funniest movie I’ve seen in a while. I have never liked Channing Tatum, but he and Jonah Hill were perfect together. The movie begins in high school, where Tatum plays the popular jock and Hill plays the nerdy kid with no friends and no date to prom. Seven years later, they meet up again in the police academy and become best friends and partners. When they finally graduate from the academy, they are underwhelmed by the boring life of a beat cop. They attempt to arrest a group of drug-dealers at the park, but their perp is released because they didn’t read him his Miranda rights (Tatum doesn’t remember them). Because, apparently, they look like high school kids, they are asked to go undercover at a local high school to infiltrate a group of young drug dealers. This time around, the kids are all smart and environmentally conscious, which makes Hill the cool kid and Tatum the outcast.
This is a really, really funny movie, with some creative and fun action sequences to boot. However, it’s not for everyone (Rated R for language). I wouldn’t say I’ve become a Channing Tatum fan, but this is definitely at step in the right direction for him, and Jonah Hill continues to surprise.
Grade: A-