In 1996, the West Coast skate magazine Big Brother released its first video, mostly of skateboard tricks, but with stunts and gags interspersing the skate segments. Around the same time, in Pennsylvania, skateboarder Bam Margera began releasing similar videos under the title "CKY," which stood for Camp Kill Yourself. These two tribes joined forces with Johnny Knoxville at the helm, and in 2000, Jackass debuted on MTV.
Twenty-two years later, with fewer teeth, more plates and screws, and a few gray hairs, the gang is back in Jackass Forever, released in theaters on Friday. The TV iteration of Jackass was unmistakably Gen X; it was also very much a product of its era. The latest film in the Jackass franchise has bent but not been broken by the times, bringing in new blood but offering the same primal thrills you feel guilty for laughing at.
