The Jerk

You've gotta love the 70's. That is a decade that produced some of the greatest comedies, dramas, war films, art films, etc etc. If it's a classic and it was released in the second half of the 20th century, chances are it was the 70's. The Jerk is just another of those classic screwball comedies that we all know and love. It's no Airplane! but it is a lot of fun and has plenty of that same goofy, quirky, and all around bizarre humor. Steve Martin plays Navin Andrews, a man who was raised by a black family in Missouri. On his birthday one year, Navin finally learns that this family of kindly black southerners aren't his real family and so Navin decides to set out and make something of his life by traveling to St. Louis. The film opens with Navin sitting under a staircase next to a movie theater, drinking whiskey with two of his hobo buddies. He introduces himself to the audience saying that he isn't a bum, just a jerk. He then proceeds to tell us of his life and the story goes from there, taking off into all sorts of weird and wacky places with strange characters and events, where hilarity always ensues.

Steve Martin is what makes this movie without a doubt. He is absolutely hysterical and delivers the best lines of the film. The character of Navin is an absolute idiot who can't comprehend the real world to save his life. Thus we see him getting into all sorts of hilarious situations that any normal person would have just found a simplistic way out of. But Navin delivers all the laughs as Steve Martin bumbles around as one of the most entertaining characters I've ever seen in one of these screwball comedies. Great comedy comes from great improv, something this film allegedly has a lot of. And I'll believe it because there are some moments where I could never have seen that put on paper. Moments that could only be conceived by the spontaneous mind of a comedic genius like Steve Martin. I'm talking about those moments when Martin will do something so absurd and so unexpected that you can even see the actors he is with begin to break down. Everyone has fun with this movie, and it makes it all the more enjoyable.

As fun as this movie is, you still have to remember that it is just a screwball comedy. It isn't trying to accomplish anything major, and it just wants to elicit a good laugh. And it definitely did that for me. There are plenty of dumb things about this movie and moments that aren't as funny as others. I can't help but compare this movie to Airplane and its farcical nature. Airplane definitely does a better job than The Jerk and it has a more consistently hilarious spoof tone to it. The Jerk is funny from start to finish and definitely never tries to take itself seriously, but it is really a film you have to put yourself in a much lighter and less intellectual state of mind to watch and enjoy. There's nothing inherently wrong with this brand of comedy, but it is pretty simple. Yet, when done right, you get great results, and I can't deny that The Jerk does it right.

Films like these I can only enjoy to a certain extent, and that is solely based off of personal opinion. The Jerk is a hilarious film and is actually really well made for what it's worth. There is never a dull moment and Steve Martin is hysterical. This film is nothing more than a screwball comedy, and you will know it about fifteen minutes in. As far as comedies go, this one is great, and there is a lot of fun to be had with it.