Jackass 3D (2010)
★★★½ — Jackass 3D (2010)
There's a moment in Jackass 3D where you catch yourself laughing so hard your stomach hurts, and then you think, "What is wrong with me?" And then you laugh again. That's the Jackass contract, and it's been the same since the TV show. You know exactly what you're signing up for when you sit down, and this film doesn't pretend otherwise for a single second. Utter, unapologetic, face-first-in-a-pile-of-manure stupidity, and somehow, genuinely brilliant in its own dumb way.
It's more of the same, of course. Pranks, stunts, and body horror played for laughs, all cranked up to eleven. Bees feature. Slow-motion genitalia feature. Steve-O does things that would make a doctor weep. The whole gang is back, seemingly incapable of ageing or developing any sense of self-preservation, and there's something weirdly joyful about that. These lads are committed to their craft in a way most actors only dream about, even if that craft is exclusively finding new and inventive ways to injure themselves or each other.
The 3D gimmick is exactly that: a gimmick. It doesn't transform the experience or add any real depth (no pun intended). What it does do is make the inevitable projectile moments land with a little extra shove in the face, and if you're watching in a packed cinema with a crowd that's already losing their minds, that does count for something. But strip it away and you've still got the same chaotic, loveable carnage underneath. The format is decoration. The stupidity is the substance.
And here's the thing about that stupidity: it's genuinely inventive. There's real creative energy in working out how to make an audience simultaneously recoil and howl with laughter, and the best segments here have a kind of mad genius to them. It's not clever satire. It's not deep comedy. There's zero plot, zero message, and zero shame, and that's entirely the point. Judging Jackass by those standards is like complaining a fairground ride doesn't have enough character development.
Where I'll go further than some is this: I actually think it's better than the first two films. It feels tighter, the gags hit harder, and there's a looseness and confidence to it that comes from a crew who know exactly what they're doing, even when what they're doing is profoundly idiotic. The slo-motion camera work on some of the stunts gives the chaos this strange, almost beautiful quality, which makes the whole thing even more absurd and weirdly watchable. I had a look at Jackass 3.5 as well, the offcuts release, and while that has its moments, the cream very much made it into this one.
If the Jackass universe is your thing, this is the peak of it. And if you've followed the crew through their various side projects, you'll know that capturing this kind of anarchic group energy isn't always guaranteed. I reviewed Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa and while that has plenty going for it, it's a very different beast. This is the full ensemble doing what they do best, all in together, all completely unhinged.
You'll groan. You'll flinch. You'll cover your eyes and then immediately peek through your fingers. And you'll be laughing too hard to care about any of it. It's not a classic in any traditional sense, but it absolutely delivers on every promise it makes. Three and a half stars, no apologies.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2010 | Watched: 2025-08-28
Where to watch
Watch in the UK
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Watch in the US
Stream: fuboTV · Paramount Plus Premium · Paramount Plus Essential · Paramount+ Amazon Channel
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Related on Movies With Macca
More from Jeff Tremaine: Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013) · Jackass: Gumball Rally 3000 Special (2002) · Jackass 3.5 (2011) · Jackass 2.5 (2007)
More with Johnny Knoxville: Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013) · Skiptrace (2016) · The Dukes of Hazzard (2005) · The Ringer (2005)
More from the 2010s: Wonder (2017) · Beautiful Boy (2018) · The Witch (2015) · What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
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