’21 Jump Street’ not bad, not good, not much

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum make an enjoyable comedy duo in the 2012 reboot of 21 Jump Street, the Phil Lord and Chris Miller-directed comedy. Resurrecting the 1980s TV series, the film finds two cops heading back to high school to figure out the underpinnings of a burgeoning drug syndicate.

Hill’s Schmidt and Tatum’s Jenko have been friends for a while, but their close ties are put to the test. In high school, they were complete opposites. Jenko was the lady’s man, while Schmidt, mouth full of braces, was in need of some friends. When returning to high school as detectives, they assume those old roles, but now they knew how to find success. They have a chance to simultaneously solve the case and rewrite history.

The premise and presence of these top-billed stars sounds like a recipe for laughs, but the movie is essentially a two-hour exercise in increasingly ridiculous one-liners. Granted, many of the jokes are quite funny, but the problem with 21 Jump Street is a common problem for the Hill-Franco-Rogen-etc. pictures that have materialized in recent years. On the surface, they are clever films that buck the Hollywood system, but by the end of their duration, they feel too formulaic and typical — like they have become the very films they are trying to not become.

21 Jump Street follows that same rhythm. Right after some well-earned laughs from Hill, Tatum and scene-stealing Ice Cube, the plot falls into a romantic comedy setting where Schmidt starts falling for a girl in the school play and Tatum tries to earn some hallway respect. Everything builds toward a cathartic scene (at the school play, of course — how cliche); it feels like a bunch of screenwriters painted themselves into the very corner they were trying to avoid. Satire is not an excuse because the film doesn’t feel terribly satiric.

There’s no doubt that Hill is a funnyman worth watching. Tatum’s comedic chops are on fine display as well. They make for an enjoyable duo, so much so that I’m actually half-excited for the planned sequel to the film. What needs to happen to make this comedy really sing is a screenplay that breaks from past Hollywood cliches. Michael Bacalls’s script is tarnished by  its inability to stick to 2013 originality. There’s also a host of supporting characters (Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, Chris Parnell) who don’t add much to the proceedings. That’s another common casualty of these films: Everyone is invited to take part for one scene or one-liner. Simply look at This Is the End, a movie chockfull of cameos.

On paper, a modern-day reboot of 21 Jump Street sounds like a bad idea. Kudos to Hill and company for giving it their all even if the results are spotty.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• 21 Jump Street

• 2012

• Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller

• Written by Michael Bacall; based on a story by Bacall and Jonah Hill; based on the original TV series

• Starring Hill, Channing Tatum and Ice Cube

• Running time: 109 minutes

• Rated R for crude and sexual content, pervasive language, drug material, teen drinking and some violence

• Rating: