21 JUMP STREET (Rated R)
 
In the early days of the FOX TV network, “21 Jump Street” was a hip TV drama about undercover cops, with a novice Johnny Depp in a starring role.

With “Superbad” comedian Jonah Hill in one of the starring roles for the reinvention of an almost-forgotten TV series, it’s clear the cinematic “21 Jump Street” is a different breed of cool cat.

To be kind, Jonah Hill is no Johnny Depp, but then neither is Hill’s co-star and partner on the police force, Channing Tatum, even though he’s a force of nature that exudes a certain amount of charisma.

As the film opens in 2005, Tatum and Hill, respectively playing Jenko and Schmidt, are the polar opposites during their senior year of high school.

The good-looking jock type, Jenko is an amiable lug who coasts through the school on his charm and sense of entitlement that comes from being tight with the popular crowd.

Copying the style of Eminem’s Slim Shady, complete with the bleached hair, the academically brilliant Schmidt is a walking disaster who hangs out with the perennial losers and outsiders.  

Fast forward seven years, and we find Jenko and Schmidt enrolled in the police academy, where Schmidt is pressed into service to help Jenko improve his dismal written test scores.

After graduation, the duo is assigned to bike patrol duty in the local park, where one day they nab a drug dealer in an arrest that they exuberantly celebrate with unprofessional behavior.

The fallout from this arrest lands the pair in the special Jump Street unit where youthful-looking officers are assigned to undercover duty in the local schools.

Posing as brothers and living with Schmidt’s parents, Jenko and Schmidt return to their old high school to bust a drug dealing ring that’s run by a snotty rich kid who’s into recycling and expects to go to Berkeley.

Not unexpectedly, Jenko and Schmidt start to relive their high school days with a greater sense of purpose, thinking incorrectly that they have all the right answers this time around.

When their identities become mixed up, the results are hilarious.  

Jenko, the former campus stud, falls in with the nerds, while the socially awkward Schmidt finds acceptance from the cool crowd.

While their Jump Street colleagues keep solving cases, the hapless pair spends more time trying to adjust to new rules of behavior and fitting in with the school scene.

Schmidt enrolls in a drama class, determined to become Peter Pan in the school production, probably for no better reason than his forbidden crush on Molly (Brie Larson).

Oddly enough, Molly is in a semi-open but unfulfilling relationship with Eric (Dave Franco), the big man on campus who just happens to enjoy talking about composting as much as he likes being the major drug supplier.

Meanwhile, Jenko struggles through his science class, but gets teamed up with the bright kids who enjoy blowing up things and teaching him how to do the same.

As Jenko and Schmidt try to ingratiate themselves with Eric, the drug dealer requires them to consume his product in order to prove that they are ordinary students and not undercover narcs.

Fueled by the powerful drugs, Jenko nearly destroys his classroom in a crazed attempt to diagram a scientific experiment in a burst manic energy.

This being a comedy, though one full of action, “21 Jump Street” is bursting with hilarious surprises as Jenko and Schmidt trip over themselves in their charade to fool fellow students and teachers.

“21 Jump Street” may be the first movie to have a serious car chase that involves stretch limos with the cops and bad guys shooting at each other from the sun roofs.  

The perceived plot of the two officers trying to do convincing undercover work is secondary to the free flowing type of mayhem that Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum bring to their roles.

Indeed, there’s complete excess of wacky craziness in this enjoyable comedy.  The best humor is not from the wild stunts, chases and party scenes, but from the comedic chemistry of the odd couple of the two lead characters.

TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL

The place for film buffs to gather next month will be at the third annual TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood, from April 12 to April 15.

Once again, the classic old-time theater palaces of Graumann’s Chinese Theatre and the Egyptian, in addition to the modern Arclight and the venerable Cinerama Dome, will host special screenings.

A three-film tribute to legendary filmmaker Stanley Donen will include an appearance by Audrey Hepburn, who starred in the Donen films to be screened, including “Charade,” “Two for the Road,” and “Funny Face.”

Dick Van Dyke, who needs no introduction, will introduce a retrospective of Laurel and Hardy film shorts and discuss the influence of these comedians on his life and career.

A slew of old horror films will be offered, including “The Wolf Man” (1941), starring Lon Chaney, Jr., and “Frankenstein” (1931), with Boris Karloff in the titular role.

Keep an eye on this space leading up to the TCM Classic Film Festival for more information on a great lineup of classic films.
     
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.