21 Jump Street - Blu-ray Review #35

4.3 Stars (out of 5) – Rated R

Synopsis

In this action-comedy based on the 1980s-debuted TV show, Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum play youthful undercover cops who work the local high school. There to investigate a drug ring, the guys find that much has changed since their own school days. (Buy Now $19.96)

Listen to the show

Starring:

Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Brie Larson, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, DeRay Davis, Ice Cube, Dax Flame, Chris Parnell, Ellie Kemper

Director:

Phil Lord, Chris Miller

Blu-ray Release Date:

June 26, 2012

Subtitles:

English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Indonesian, Korean, Mandarin (Simplified), Mandarin (Traditional), Thai

Rating

Overall rating weighted as follows:
Audio 40%, Video 40%, Special Features 20%, Movie - its just our opinion so take it with a grain of salt

Audio 4.5 Stars (out of 5)

Dolby and DTS Demo Discs used as basis for comparison

• Subwoofer – 4.0 Stars
• Dialog – 5.0 Stars
• Surround Effects – 4.0 Stars
• Dynamic Range – 5.0 Stars

English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1, Thai: Dolby Digital 5.1

The audio on this Blu-ray won’t jump at you, but it does fit well with the movie. The subwoofer gets a decent amount of action with a few bass heavy songs, deep revving motorcycles, gunshots, and the couch rumbles during explosions. Rear channels also get into the action by opening the room with sounds of cheering crowds, music, and whizzing bullets. Dialog is presented with great clarity and makes sure every off color joke is clearly heard. Most of the action takes place in the second half of the film, leaving the first half less exciting to listen to.

Video  4.4 Stars (out of 5)

Spears & Munsil Benchmark Blu-ray Edition used as basis for comparison

• Color Accuracy  - 4.5 Stars
• Shadow detail – 3.5 Stars
• Clarity – 4.0 Stars
• Skin tones – 5.0 Stars
• Compression – 5.0 Stars

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC, Resolution: 1080p, Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1, Original Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Colors are natural and full of earth tones. The picture isn’t very bright, and leaves lots of details in the dark. This also makes the colors a little dim, but it doesn’t stop the leafy green Peter Pan costume from drawing all your attention. Clarity isn’t the best, but it’s good enough to make out beard whiskers, notice clothing patterns, and see small wrinkles in the young officer’s faces.  Skin tones always looked natural, and no compression issues were noticed.

Bonus Features 3.5 Stars (out of 5)

• Audio Commentary: Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are joined by Actors Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p, 29:32): About 20 different deleted and extended scenes.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 4:58).
• Cube-O-Rama (1080p, 1:53): An Ice Cube montage of outtakes and one liners.
• Back to School (1080p, 7:43): Cast and crew discuss going back to high school.
• Brothers in Arms (1080p, 6:24): A look at the Channing Tatum-Jonah Hill undercover duo.
• On Set (1080p, 4:42): Cast and crew discuss a special cameo in the film.
• The Rob Riggle Show (1080p, 9:24): Cast and crew discuss they fun they had filming with Rob Riggle.
• Peter Pan on the Freeway (1080p, 4:12): A collection of footage from the making of the freeway chase scene.
• Previews.
• UV Digital Copy.

Movie – 3.5 Stars (out of 5)

Review

The original TV show 21 Jump Street was almost cop drama that sometimes tacked serious issues that teens faced in the 1980’s. This movie is nothing like the original show, it’s a rude silly comedy that has a few action sequences. I laughed several times while watching this, it’s filled with witty dialog and lots of sexual euphemisms. I expected Jonah Hill to be funny, but I was surprised to see how funny Channing Tatum was. At its core this film is a buddy cop movie, but it does offer more than laughs and bit of action. It also explores the idea of trying relive high school over again, how kids have changed in just 10 years, and learning who you really are. It’s not a deep thinking movie, this film knows what it is and doesn’t shy away from it. If you want a silly comedy with lots of cursing and crude humor, 21 Jump Street delivers the goods.

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