I haven’t seen the new “Jackass 3.5” yet. Hell, I haven’t even watched my unrated cut of “Jackass 3D” yet. But it’s not from lack of interest. If anything, I feel like I’m hoarding these last few bits of “Jackass” for the perfect time. I’m waiting until I’ve had that perfect-storm-of-crap day and I need that guaranteed laugh.
And it does feel like we’ve reached the end of something. I can’t imagine how many more years of this the guys have in them. The ending of “Jackass 3D” used a Weezer song to create a genuinely poignant sense of this being a conclusion for them. All of the footage in “Jackass 3.5” was filmed as part of the same big round of filming as “Jackass 3D,” and knowing how difficult it was to get everyone together for that, I don’t see them pulling it off again any time soon.
I love that Spike Jonze is part of the “Jackass” family. There’s something so wonderful about the notion that this serious filmmaker sometimes puts on latex make-up so he can go freak random strangers out with ill-timed questions about camel toe.
I try to imagine Stanley Kubrick skateboarding in a gorilla costume, and somehow, I can’t quite conjure up that image. With Jonze, though, we’ve got a clip of him in comedy terrorist mode today, and it’s an exclusive glimpse at what’s in store when “Jackass 3.5” arrives in stores.
Right now, though, you can see weekly episodes over at Joost.com, with the first one having gone live on, appropriately enough, April Fool’s Day. There’s another going live this week, and so on. If you look in their “Jackass 3.5” channel, they’ve got a lot of short clips up already. They’ll actually be releasing the entire film via Joost, and only after they’ve done so will they put it out on DVD and other home video formats.
Enjoy this quick one, and I’ll be enjoying the slow drip since it’ll make it seem less like an ending and more like they’re still around, still working, still making me laugh.