Title: Nitro Circus The Movie
Directed by: Gregg Godfrey & Jeremy Rawle
Starring: Jolene Van Vugt, Street Bike Tommy, Jim Dechamp, Eric Roner, “Special” Greg Powell, Parks Bonifay, Dusty Wygle and Arron “Wheelz” Fotheringham
Running time: 91 minutes / Rated PG-13 / Available on Blu-ray
Special Features: Steve-O Interview, Behind the Scenes Featurettes, Deleted Scenes, Trailer
A group of friends design daredevil type stunts and carry them out with sometimes amazing results, but riddled with a few cringe-worthy mishaps.
I was not at all familiar with Nitro Circus, and when I first had a look at the DVD I immediately thought what many like me thought is that it’s just like Jackass, but with corporate sponsors. What surprised me was that Jeff Tremaine, Johnny Knoxville and Steve-O all gave tip of the hat interviews for this film which will maybe appease the haters. Jeff Tremaine stated, “Jackass designs their stunts to fail,” which is the major difference between the two teams. The stunts performed in Nitro Circus are seemingly well thought out, but sometimes accidents happen. Luckily for Arron “Wheelz” Fotheringham, he’s already in a wheelchair; but what a badass little trooper.
I liked this film for the stunts, but I didn’t really get much from the guys (and Jolene, the one with the vagina) personalities. I guess I’m just more partial to Jackass since they’ve been around longer and I’m just a sucker for gross-out humor. However this film was vibrant and beautifully shot, even though it seemed more like a showcase of their Vegas show with a bunch of mini stunts thrown in for time. I would’ve liked to have seen the whole Vegas show and a little less of the drawn out-not as impressive stunts like the jelly donut wrecking ball and flipping the car. Also the “interview” with Steve-O on the special features option isn’t exactly what I’d call an interview, just a 15 second clip of him giving Nitro Circus props.
Parents will appreciate Nitro Circus because it’s not like Jackass. The team promotes safety when designing and performing the stunts, and even make sure to show the injuries (nothing too terrible) after things go awry. All in all this was a fun film and I look forward to seeing more of their awesome stunts.
Reviewed by: JM Willis
Total Rating: B
