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Tropic Thunder (2008)

Director: Ben Stiller

Time Out rating

Average user rating

48 reviews

Synopsis

Five actors sign up for a war movie, only to find themselves fighting in an actual battle. Starring Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., and with controversial cameos from Tom Cruise and Owen Wilson.

Movie review

From Time Out London

Don’t be late for ‘Tropic Thunder’, or you’ll miss the second-best bit: the spoof trailers for ‘Scorcher VI’ starring action hero Tugg Speedman, ‘The Fatties 2’ starring gross-out favourite Jeff Portnoy and ‘Satan’s Alley’ starring Oscar-laden thesp Kirk Lazarus. Speedman, Portnoy and Lazarus – played by Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr respectively – are the leads in a bombastic Vietnam epic shooting on location in the Golden Triangle. The flailing Brit director (Steve Coogan) sets them loose in the jungle, intending to film their method-fuelled progress on hidden cameras, but they end up facing genuine combat together. Cue machine-guns all round, and then hugs.

The makers of ‘Tropic Thunder’ knew they had a challenge on their hands with the character of Lazarus, who is surgically blacked up to play an African-American soldier, meaning that Downey is too. They did a good job of defusing the issue in the US – they’re parodying Hollywood narcissism, not the black experience, for heaven’s sake! – and were enormously helped by Downey’s terrific, compulsive performance. Equal parts brash, bonkers and perplexed, he’s the film’s best bit. (The mental-health lobby was less than impressed by his bravura monologue about the perils of actors going ‘full retard’ in pursuit of Oscar glory, but that’s another story.)

Certainly, the film works much better as Tinseltown parody than as action flick or character drama; on those terms, which co-writer and director Stiller seems to have taken seriously, it’s pretty ordinary stuff. But its better moments of self-referential snark, such as an ace cameo from Tom Cruise as an obnoxious studio exec, have the feel of a superior end-of-term revue.

Author: Ben Walters 2008-09-16 10:08:45

Time Out London Issue 1987, 17-23 Sept, 2008

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User reviews of this film

N said...

Posted on Oct 13 2008 21:34 If you want to laugh at Tom Cruise, watch his Scientology Promo video with Mission Impossible music, especially when he laughs).

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evolver said...

Posted on Oct 12 2008 18:40 Extract multiple trite and boring scenes from the world's worst movies and string them together - it'll beat this hands down - it could not be worse.

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filmnut said...

Posted on Oct 12 2008 18:27 The only way this is going to be funny is if you're stoned or just come out of bird - there are one or two grin moments but overall it drags you down to depression faster than a bottle of gin.

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Turnip713 said...

Posted on Oct 12 2008 08:23 I think the wrong sort of people are going to see this movie. I normally hate Ben Stiller and Jack Black. I normally find their work crass and rather stupid, but I LOVED this movie. In the audience I was in with, people couldn't stop laughing long enough for me to hear much of the dialog properly. I missed half of the lines in the movie because people were laughing so hard. This is not just some stupid feel good 'oh look, poopy! hahaha' flick. This is satire. Vicious, take no prisoners, sadistic satire. See doctor strange love for details. In order to like this film you have to be intelligent, and almost completely insensitive.

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Henry Zakumumpa said...

Posted on Oct 11 2008 19:34 Tropic Thunder is one of the funnier comedies of the year. The first minutes of the movie are worth the ticket alone. They make fun of hollywood and the movie business as we have come to know it.: Sequels,movie stars,action flicks ,movie reviews etc. The movie plot is really a simple one. To get the jokes one has to have a little working knowledge of the hollywood movie business. The joke is really on hollywood. A director sets out to shoot the biggest war movie ever made.Amidst fears of the studio pulling the plug on production owing to skyrocketing production costs and actors block ( if such a thing exists), the director ditches the movie set for an actual jungle where the actors encounter a real -life drug cartel militia. It is a star studded comedy. Dont miss Robert Downey's turn as an African American wannabe which he plays convincingly. Jack Black as usual is dependable when it comes to testing the boundaries of comedy. Nick Nolte also gives some laughs,an unusual role for him,He plays a Nam veteran with a very interesting twist. Tropic Thunder is one of the better comedy offerings of the year.You will get the jokes if you know hollywood and if you have seen many of the Vietnam war movies.In many ways it is a spoof of the hollywood war movie, ranging from Platoon to Rambo.If you must miss any part of the movie let it not be the first minutes.On their own,they are worth the ticket!

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ben s said...

Posted on Oct 07 2008 22:34 i think it's evident from the type of reviewer, what sort of film this actually is. essentially, if you're pretty basic you're gonna love this film. if, however, you quite like suspense or something else to think about, this most definitely won't be your 'cup of tea'. as films go, this was pretty low - a waste of cast, budget and any other resource utilised. to the viewer, a complete waste of time (that is unless you're one of the basic mob). don't take my word for it, see it for yourself.

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N said...

Posted on Oct 07 2008 18:17 Why is everyone raving about Tom Cruise in this film? Oh look Tom Cruise's character is dancing during the end credits how funny is that, or is everyone laughing at Tom Cruise dancing? Another film that was a laugh to make with I guess outtakes on the DVD that are funnier than the actual film.

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colski said...

Posted on Oct 06 2008 20:43 What a film!!! Tom Cruise is really funny, Downey jr is superb and Ben Stiller killed a panda. What more could you ask for. Don't listen to anyone who says this is crap. They need to lighten up a bit, sit back and enjoy. They probably just need to get laid!!!

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Caroline said...

Posted on Oct 06 2008 17:20 The only funny part was Tom Cruise's dancing over the final credits and the opening credits of spoof trailers. Apart from these rare moments of mild amusement, it was overall difficult to sit through. Nobody laughed out loud and I really struggled to find humour in any of the performances. Just a load of special FX and comedy catering for idiots.

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N said...

Posted on Oct 06 2008 15:31 We weren't expecting Platoon, we were expecting a decent laugh-your-head-off comedy but it failed to deliver. It's not your fault your part of the 'not-funny-but-you-laugh-out-loud' crowd. And nobody has a pole up their jacksy.

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Stuart said...

Posted on Oct 01 2008 12:19 Worst film i've seen all year. Many people walked out, and i should have followed.

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Otis said...

Posted on Oct 01 2008 00:26 A decent film, thanks to Robert Downey Jnr who carries it. Some great stuff in this film I'd have to say, but also some very poor crude, and unfunny stuff. Having said that I noticed a lot of people in the cinema still laughed out loud at it. I guess it depends on what you like. I really can't stand Jack Black but luckily he didn't get too much air time in this film. I used to think you couldn't go wrong with a Ben Stiller comedy. This one has given me reason to doubt that confidence. It get's naff towards the end especially. Anyway, you won't be wasting your money, and you'll have a few good lines to repeat with friends afterwards. Worth a look, not as bad as some people have said but I do understand where they're coming from.

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Suzy said...

Posted on Sep 30 2008 21:18 I went with an open mind as possible having had a quick read through the mixed reviews.
Dear me though, not a good film and I normally think Ben Stiller films are great. I guess there were a few laughs, but honestly go and see something else. I just want to forget this one asap!

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David said...

Posted on Sep 30 2008 18:23 To summarize this movie in one word - Weak.

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N said...

Posted on Sep 30 2008 00:58 Unfortunately not good at all. Nobody else in the cinema really laughed. Shame because the trailer showed so much potential. Wait until its released on DVD....no in fact TV next Christmas.

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