“The Jerk” – Nathan’s Movie Challenge, Week 8
“Wait a minute, what’s happening to my special purpose?”
Sigh.
I don’t know if this movie can work watching it alone. I didn’t laugh or even smile much at all. Mostly, I was bored.
It felt like a very flat version of a Farrelly Brothers comedy.
Kingpin is a much better version of this type of “simpleton goes into the world” story.
Bowfinger is a much better Steve Martin comedy.
Maybe I’m just not into this film’s brand of humor, or Carl Reiner, but I didn’t get much out of The Jerk.
The Jerk was at the time of this review at #218 on my Flickchart list of shame (ranked #419 among the best movies of all time). Here’s how it entered my chart:
The Jerk vs. Resident Evil
Resident Evil wins.
The Jerk vs. Unbreakable
It’s not my favorite Shyamalan, but it’s decent. Unbreakable wins.
The Jerk vs. Cube 2: Hypercube
Cube 2 is really bad. The Jerk wins.
The Jerk vs. Vincent
Vincent is a great little stop-motion short from early Tim Burton. Takes the matchup.
The Jerk vs. The Thing From Another World
The original film that Carpenter’s The Thing was based on is not great, but you can still see a lot of the DNA that made it an effective story in the remake. It will win over The Jerk.
The Jerk vs. The Rescue
Many people might not know or remember this kid’s movie from the 80s, but I have very fond memories of it. It’s completely unrealistic and bonkers, but it’s the fantasy of wish fulfillment that so many movies had in that time period. Definitely wins here.
The Jerk vs. Godzilla (1998)
Yeah, The Jerk isn’t as bad as the terrible American Godzilla from the 90s.
The Jerk vs. The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys
Definitely The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys. Early Emile Hirsch. It’s not great, but it’s better than The Jerk.
The Jerk vs. Happy Gilmore
Happy Gilmore is actually one of the only Adam Sandler movies I actually halfway like, so it will win here over The Jerk.
The Jerk vs. Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor isn’t awful, but it’s not as good as The Jerk.
The Jerk is now ranked #1150 out of 1377 movies on my Best Movies of All-Time chart.
It’s now 7th on the list of my favorite Steve Martin movies, and my #6 of 1979.
Last for the week is Brick. Take a look at the other films I’ve ranked during the challenge.