Review Roundup: Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill Return in 22 JUMP STREET!

By: Jun. 13, 2014
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The comedic duo that delighted audiences in hit film '21 Jump Street' is back again! Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill return in '22 Jump Street', a sequel to the 2012 comedy.

After the success of the 21 Jump Street program, Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) once again find themselves going undercover to catch a drug dealer, but this time in a far different venue; a college campus. Complications ensue as the two attempt to blend into college life, especially when Jenko finds a place amongst the jocks and Schmidt squeezes himself into the bohemian art scene. Not only must the duo crack the case, but find a way to manage their ever immature partnership.

Written by Jonah Hill and Michael Bacall, '22 Jump Street' stars Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Peter Stormare, and Ice Cube, with appearances by Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Brad Pitt, Anna Faris, and Queen Latifah.

Let's see what the critics had to say!

Manohla Dargis, The New York Times: In 2012, Schmidt rode the geek-nation wave and even scored romantically, while Jenko the jock felt the sting of rejection. The new movie somewhat reverses that dynamic even as it continues to milk jokes about who's popular and not. It's an odd coupling that still tickles a comedy sweet spot partly because both actors are naturally likable and seem to be having a good time.

Zaki Hasan, The Huffington Post: ...22 Jump Street manages the rare feat of being a sequel that's just as good as its predecessor.

Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post: "22 Jump Street" steers blessedly clear of common sequel traps, even while brazenly committing so many of the form's sins.

Mick LaSalle, The San Francisco Gate: It's coarse, free-flowing and playful. People talk the way they talk in real life. It has no sentiment of any kind and no phony uplift. No one becomes a better person for having watched it... And it's really funny, not "heh-heh" funny, but laugh-out-loud funny, virtually scene by scene.

Claudia Puig, USA Today: The self-referential movie is exceedingly aware of its inherent lack of originality, and that knowledge makes for some of the movie's best jokes. If this all sounds strangely circular, that's because this is the ultimate meta movie.

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: From the opening stunt on an 18-wheeler to a spring-break rager, everything is bloated to the max. And a scarily hilarious coda that rolls out ideas for endless Jump Street follow-ups is alone worth the ticket price.

Scott Foundas, Variety: A movie this self-aware might easily drown in its own ironic detachment, but as they did so deftly in both "21 Jump Street" and "The Lego Movie," Lord and Miller balance their smartypants meta-humor with go-for-broke pratfalls and a certain fundamental sincerity that keeps the characters relatable without ever veering into straight-faced emotionalism.

Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: Like any savvy sophomore, this comedy sequel knows there's a trick to getting a passing grade.

Justin Craig, Fox News: The Comedy is sharp and the mystery still has a few unexpected twists. Both films should make for a great double feature one day and it will be pretty difficult to top the Hill-Tatum duo going forward.

Michael Phillips, The Chicago Tribune: There's no reason a sequel containing this many gags about how lame sequels usually are should work at all. But Lord and Miller turn their comic approach into a religion: the Church of Self-Referentialism.



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