In the mid-1990s, a series of tapes circulated in popular culture. These tapes featured recordings of phone calls that were done for pranks. The history of these tapes is documented across several websites, but they are commonly known as The Jerky Boys. My stepfather had one of the tapes and exposed me to them, finding their outrageous humor an interesting change of pace for a teenage mind. The team behind the calls got so popular that a movie was greenlit, and that’s where 1995’s The Jerky Boys movie comes to play. That’s right, tough guy, they made a movie!
The Jerky Boys is a crime comedy that features Johnny B. and Kamal. They stumble into the New York mob’s world by doing crank calls to a boss. They get mistaken for hitmen, and the two go through dangerous moments to uncover police corruption, chases, and much more. They utilize their prank calls to survive absurd situation after absurd situation. They eventually get exposed, and their screw ups end up making them heroes at the end. There’s even a prank call to the White House, but then again, maybe it was fake, yeah, most likely fake…or was it?
How can prank phone calls lead to a whole movie? The Jerky Boys not only entangle you in the world of prank calls, but also in mistaken identity. The calls made are nonsensical, but because this is 1995, you must throw away modern things like Google and others. Could this happen? Unlikely, but it could very well be something that could lead to a few mix-ups. Using over-the-top humor, the story is fast paced, and the film turns pranks into plot points that make sense, albeit not without suspension of disbelief.
Johnny and Kamal are screw ups, but they are lovable. They accidentally step into unsavory situations and expose police corruption. The two play on the accidental hero and antihero archetypes, making more out of the movie than just a lopsided affair. That said, something is endearing about how the 1990s comedy scene lends itself well enough to how the film puts the characters in peril, only to escape in absurdity. Several tropes are found here, including success, rebellion, and street smarts, but it’s blurred because it’s done in a comedic way.
Want to dive deeper? There’s something to be said about the satirization of authority. The Jerky Boys work for me because they use satire to show the incompetence of law enforcement, the mob, and how chaos could expose truths that are sometimes hidden in plain sight. The humor in the movie works well because it’s satire to me, and if you take it too seriously, you’ll find the film to be stupid and nonsensical.
Look, the Jerky Boys movie is a comedy. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and though I gave it a good write-up and explored some ins and outs, it’s satire and slapstick. It exists in a time capsule of ’90s comedy that you may or may not remember. If you’re a fan of the tapes, this will be a nice nostalgia trip, and if you’re new, you may find some chuckles here and there.
You can stream The Jerky Boys movie or even find it on VHS by clicking here, tough guy!
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