21 Jump Street was indeed one of the television shows that I watched as a kid, one familiar enough to me that I can’t still hear the theme song in my head. Still, when I heard about this film, my reaction was similar to that of Richard Roeper: I didn’t think it needed to exist. It seemed like one of those slimy cash-in projects that could be instantly dismissed, especially since it looked like it had nothing to do with the original show. Flash forward a couple of years later and I learn that this was successful enough to spawn a sequel. Interesting but not terribly surprising. But then as time passed, I realize something that is surprising. Word of mouth about 22 Jump Street is that it’s fantastic and the retrospective view of this first one is that it was pretty good too. Since I like so few of the modern American comedies that are made to be as dumb as possible, this seems like a good enough reason to give this one a whirl.

This incarnation of the franchise takes of the form of a buddy cop movie with the buddies being Morton Schmidt and Greg Jenko. Since they’re played by Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, naturally the former is the smart but unpopular and underweight nerd while the latter is the dumb but good-looking and beefy jock. So far so dumb, and it’s actually made even worse that the two went to high school together but only became friends in police academy when they helped each other graduate. But then they hit high school and all of a sudden the whole movie turns around so fast it’s like magic. A simple identity mix-up (clichéd but effective) means that Hill gets to hang out with the cool kids and Tatum becomes a nerd.

The humor in 21 Jump Street isn’t the stuff of greatness. There’s no single stand out joke that you’ll remember with fondness years later though the scene of them getting high on drugs comes close. What it does do is consistently keep the audience on a low-boil of funniness and giggling fits. The key to all this is the fantastic chemistry that Hill and Tatum have together so that even their little moments, like rolling over a car in a cool way seem special. That’s why this is perhaps the best bromance movie ever made. I love how the film is even smart enough to acknowledge that this relationship supercedes that of Jonah’s character and his female love interest. The excellent scene of them adjusting each other’s outfits is a case in point.

To me however, what is especially impressive is how even amidst the gags and the silliness, the movie never loses sight of the plot. Every scene advances the story and the whole thing plays out plausibly, at least by Hollywood standards. There are no jokes that take you completely out of the story. I enjoyed all the satirical references to the original show while my wife especially appreciated the intelligent way it contrasted how the high school experience has changed even within such a short time. It was only after the movie ended and looked up information on it that I realized that its directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, are the same team responsible for The Lego Movie which I also loved.

All in all, 21 Jump Street was never going to be a film destined to win any major awards but I’m happy to report that the word of mouth of it being better than it has any right to be is correct. It’s has effective leads, the jokes are moderately funny and it actually hangs together as a coherent movie. That’s enough to win my recommendation.