Film

Jackass 3D

Name: Jackass 3D
Genre: Comedy, Documentary, Action
Released: 2010
Cast: Johnny Knoxville, Bam Margera, Ryan Dunn, Steve-O, Chris Pontius

Comedy
Action
Light-hearted
Relentless

The third feature outing for Knoxville's crew, shot for 3D and staged for maximum bodily consequence: bulls charge, Lamborghinis pull teeth, and things fly toward the camera that should never fly toward a camera. It's less a movie than a controlled demolition of its own cast, gross and gleeful and, underneath the chaos, weirdly tender about friendship. Not for the squeamish, obviously.

TMDb rating

3.3

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love the pure mischief of a prank that goes wrong in slow motion, where the gross-out gags and the sheer nerve of the performers do all the talking.

Skip it if you want a plot, character arcs or narrative momentum, since this is a string of stunts with little connective tissue, and the grossness can wear thin over ninety-four minutes.

What it asks of you: Expect short bursts rather than a story: about ninety-four minutes of separate sketches, each over in seconds, so you can dip in and out without losing the thread.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Jackass Number Two2006

The gold standard of the series—tighter stunts, a bigger budget, and the horse-enema gag that still makes grown men wince. This is the moment the crew perfected being simultaneously disgusting and strangely lovable.

But Same format as the one you just watched—if you're already jackass-fatigued, this won't cure it.

Jackass: The Movie2002

Where it all started—rougher, cheaper, and meaner around the edges, with a punk-rock DIY energy the later films smoothed over. Essential if you want the raw version before Hollywood polish crept in.

But Lower production values and shakier camera work; some segments feel more mean-spirited than funny.

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa2013

Johnny Knoxville in old-man prosthetics pranking unsuspecting strangers with an actual, if thin, plot holding it together—proof the crew could stretch stunts into something like storytelling. Surprisingly sweet underneath the gross-outs.

But The scripted narrative dilutes the chaos; purists who want pure stunt anarchy may find it too tame.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Jackass 3D

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Sherlock Jr.1924

Jackass's whole philosophy—your body as the punchline—starts here: Keaton risked broken bones for a laugh with the same deadpan commitment Knoxville brings, minus the ambulance on standby.

Buster Keaton performed every stunt himself, including riding a motorcycle's handlebars with no driver and diving through a moving train window—slapstick built entirely on real physical risk, decades before Jackass made it a genre.

But It's silent, black-and-white, and barely 45 minutes—patience for old-timey pacing required, though the stunts still land.

Wildboyz2003

Chris Pontius and Steve-O travel the globe getting mauled by wildlife instead of each other—same reckless spirit, swapped stunts for snakes, scorpions, and deeply questionable animal handling.

But Animal-welfare squeamishness aside, the travelogue format means less of the tight ensemble chemistry that makes Jackass work.

Ridiculousness2011

Rob Dyrdek and friends riff on viral stunt clips with the exact same laughing-at-pain energy, minus the risk to their own bodies. An easy, endless supply of that specific chaos on demand.

But It's commentary on other people's stunts rather than the real thing—less visceral, more couch-bound.

Impractical Jokers2011

Four lifelong friends humiliate each other in public via escalating dares, trading physical stunts for social embarrassment—same loyalty-through-torment dynamic, gentler on the body, harder on the ego.

But No stunts, no gore—if you came for physical spectacle rather than cringe comedy, this scratches a different itch entirely.

Freddy Got Fingered2001

A gleefully deranged cousin to Jackass's chaos—Tom Green swings a newborn by its umbilical cord and skins a moose, chasing pure shock with genuine, unhinged commitment.

But Notoriously divisive, often called one of the worst-reviewed films ever; its shock tactics haven't aged gracefully.

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan2006

Sacha Baron Cohen swaps physical stunts for social ones, pranking real people into revealing their worst instincts—the same commitment to discomfort as entertainment, aimed at culture instead of gravity.

But Sharper, meaner satire than pure slapstick—the humor cuts rather than bonds, with none of the crew's easy camaraderie.

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan poster

Fear Factor2001

Ordinary contestants eat bugs and dangle from helicopters for cash—the stunt-as-spectacle format Jackass shares, just with strangers instead of friends and a network game-show sheen.

But Sanitized for broadcast, and the contestants aren't in on the joke the way the Jackass crew always is.

Man on Wire2008

Both are about people who need the world to watch them defy death for no practical reason; Jackass laughs its way through that impulse, Man on Wire holds its breath.

Philippe Petit's illegal 1974 tightrope walk between the Twin Towers, told through interviews and reconstruction, is a documentary about risking your life for one moment of pure spectacle—thrilling, poetic, and genuinely nerve-shredding.

But Completely earnest and often quite moving—there's no gross-out comedy here, and the tone is closer to a heist thriller than a party.

Takeshi's Castle1986

Same engine as Jackass—ordinary bodies punished for our entertainment—just run through a game-show structure instead of a friend group, proving the format travels across continents and decades.

A Japanese game show where hundreds of contestants get launched into water, flattened by soft obstacles, and generally destroyed for a shot at the grand prize—gleeful physical humiliation dubbed into absurd English commentary.

But Repetitive by design, and the English dub's comedy is an acquired taste some find grating rather than funny.