The indelible sound of Thunder

Tropic Thunder
Rated R for: pervasive language including sexual references, violent content and drug material
Running Time: 1 hr, 46 min
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Nick Nolte

Rating: Three stars (out of four)


Tropic Thunder is over the top. Way over the top, actually, which doesn't really work in its favor. Many of the jokes fall flat. And for the majority of the movie, it stays right there at just good- above average, but not quite reaching greatness.

No, what really works in Tropic Thunder's favor are the last twenty minutes or so of the movie, when everything comes together and it starts firing on all cylinders. Then the movie becomes hilarious, and bumps up the overall experience considerably. Without the last section of the movie, I would not be giving it an (admittely somewhat reluctant) three-star review.

But rest assured- the movie itself is certainly watchable up until that point, even pretty funny at times. But it's more than worth it to get to the last twenty minutes, which reward you for your patience.

Oh, and then there's Robert Downey Jr.'s performance, which steals the show. Jack Black, who attempts self-parody here (which is commendable) comes off as his usual goofy self- there's nothing particularly great about his performance. Same goes for Ben Stiller, who, while certainly not phoning his performance in, wasn't exactly mind-blowing, either.

Neither did a bad job, and they're fine for the movie. But, again, it's really Downey who steals the show here.

Tropic Thunder starts in the jungles of Vietnam in the present day. Tropic Thunder, the movie within a movie about the Vietnam war, is being filmed here. Its unlikely cast includes Tugg Speedman (Stiller) an action star out to prove that he also has serious dramatic chops; Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) a goofy comedic film star out to prove the same thing; Alpha Chino (Brandon Jackson) a rapper-turned-actor; Kevin Sandusky (Jay Baruchel, probably best known as one of Seth Rogen's pals in Knocked Up) as the only sane one of the bunch; and, of course, Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, Jr.).

Kirk is a five-time Academy Award winning white Australian actor who is so immersed in method acting that he does the ultimate preparation for his role as a black soldier- he has an extreme cosmetic procedure to actually turn his skin black.

Some of the funniest bits of the movie revolve around the continuing annoyance that Lazarus (never breaking character) supplies Chino, who never hesitates to remind him that he's not actually a black man, but a white Australian trying to be something he's not. As you can imagine, it certainly makes for some very interesting comedy.

Ok, back to the plot- after a pompous and angry studio exec (a funny cameo, but I won't spoil it for you here) nearly pulls the plug on the whole production, the director decides to go in a completely different direction: send the actors into the jungle by themselves, give them an outline of the script and film them with hidden cameras. No crew, no craft servies, and, gravest of all to the actors, no cell phones. They're going to have to learn how to do this guerilla style.

Complications, of course, ensue, and soon the actors find themselves on the wrong side of a Vietnamese drug lord and his gang, and come to realize that this isn't part of the film: this danger is all real.

Meanwhile, there is a running subplot about Tuggman's agent (played brilliantly by Matthew Mcconaughey) trying to get his client the Tivo he was promised in his contract. He makes it his life's mission. And the conclusion of this subplot is one of the absolute funniest and most unexpected gags in the entire movie.

Finally, there's a subplot involving "Four Leaf" Tayback (Nick Nolte) and Cody (Danny McBride, seen in the recent Pineapple Express), the man on whom the "movie" is based and the pyrotechnics guy, respectively, who end up in deep waters of their own. This story is probably the least interesting in the film, but not unwatchable.





The performances are fearless, and the actors clearly show that they have a great sense of humor, considering how biting the satire can be. No one is spared, which makes the film all the more watchable.

The entire movie is a satire on the film industry, a brand of comedy that I'm a sucker for. As mentioned, it goes a bit too far over the top, which kills some of the comedy, but overall it's still pretty funny throughout.

Again, I'm giving this three stars because of the ending. Without that last chunk of the movie, I'd probably only grant this two and a half. But it was worth it for the end, and, as I said, the rest of the movie is still pretty enjoyable, but the end really sealed the deal.