Review of Action Point (2018) by Louisa M — 21 Aug 2018

"Action Point" is a laundry list of missed opportunities, a lifeless attempt at lowbrow, prank-filled comedy that lacks any inspiration or humor. If anyone was capable of hitting this premise out of the park, it's the guys behind "Jackass." It's stupid but not stupid enough. There are some bits of slapstick brilliance, but the laughs are few and far between. I wish director Tim Kirkby would've turned on the camera and let these idiots do their thing instead of aiming for a plot-based, play-it-safe bore.

Set in the late 1970s, D.C. (Johnny Knoxville) is the crackpot owner of a dinky amusement park called Action Point. The rides are unsafe (he mends a water slide with a roll of duct tape) and there's an alcoholic bear on the loose. When a brand new state-of-the-art corporate-owned park opens nearby, D.C. devises a plan to make Action Point even more dangerous, removing the brakes from the rides and creating a cheap thrills atmosphere where literally anything goes.

It sounds like a slam dunk for a comedy, but this film just isn't funny enough. Instead of making this a ridiculous free for all of dangerous stunts and Knoxville's admittedly hilarious idiotic pratfalls, it tries to be more of a touching film about a father / daughter relationship and the importance of family. That's all well and good but a comedy that lacks actual laughs will prove to be a disappointment all around.

Everything about this project is uninspired. It's not that it's a total stinker, it's that all of it feels pointless and hollow.

A SCREEN ZEALOTS REVIEW.