Review of Tropic Thunder (2008) by Omar K — 30 Nov 2015

Weâ??ve all heard of a war film and can easily guess how itâ??s going to go down, as well as the fact that a war film is always a tender and sentimental topic of story to tell, so when this totally unique idea - of casting an ensemble of A-List actors as fictional superstar actors who play soldiers for the fictional war film Tropic Thunder but are then forced to disguise themselves unknowingly as real American soldiers - came about, its subversion of the genre was always going to spike our curiosity. Mix in a toothless director, the heroin-producing Flaming Dragon gang and a venomously lethal studio executive, then this film definitely got our attention. What can be defined as an action comedy inspired by the Vietnam War and America's haplessness in prospering, as well as retaining a tongue-in-cheek view of the movie business, Tropic Thunder truly has a blast thanks to its believable yet overwhelming exaggeration of everything. And the major factor in this amplification is none other than its cast of confused and sensitive characters who lampoon their way through the film yet remain such complex creations.

We know straight from the faux trailers that open the film that Tropic Thunder is trying to build a universe of memorable characters, and by the look of the the stars that play them and the content - a man that stops the ice age, a family that farts and a homosexual priest - the characters flourish. They work so well at luring us into this ridiculous world that our sardonic expectations are already tickled before the Dreamworks logo even appears; a very smart move that tells plenty of the nature of Tropic Thunder. A nature that could be damning as well as original for the film because it is so powerful and stark in its satirizing that you will either be enthusiastic for whatâ??s to come or dread the extent of comedy these characters are subjected to. What we simply have to accept is that the universe these movie stars inhabit is as backward as Stillerâ??s re-re-retarded Simple Jack, and dropping them into the middle of the jungle with only their acting abilities to help them survive will only make things worse! These are prima donna stars that are the creme de la creme of method acting, so when placed into guerilla territory, the unrestrained, over-the-top passion they show keeps our eyes focused on their personalities, and we can't take them off them. Throughout, we are unable as audiences to deduce what frame of mind these characters are in or whether they are in character or not, they are continuously switching personalities, and it becomes stressful to get to their core, but undeniably entertaining and original viewing.

This is Ben Stiller's film for he directs, writes and stars as action star Tugg Speedman, a role he dominates as a Rambo look-alike, but it is stuttering farm boy Jack that teaches us to never go full retard! Matthew McConaughey finds a halfway between his past and present career routes as Tugg's agent, Nick Nolte was made for the rugged war veteran look, Steve Coogan still hasn't changed and Brandon T. Jackson stands out as Alpa Chino even if he isn't the only black man in the film. The other being white actor Robert Downey Jr., the 'dude, playing a dude, disguised as another dude;' he's so good that he is, as Cuba Gooding Jr. said for Downey's Oscar nomination, taking the part of the brothers. He spends the majority of the film in blackface with an African American accent that he could be mistaken for an actual African American. He is so deeply consumed by so many different personalities that the character becomes so complex especially due to the fact that Downey immerses himself so convincingly into each persona, from a carbon copy of Russell Crowe, to an African American wannabe, and a mixture of the two fused into a wartime veteran appearance. But heavyweight actor Tom Cruise's Les Grossman, the foul-mouthed studio executive, is chubby and hairy and bald like we've never seen him before. He ferociously compounds his degradable appearance with a vicious mentality that bulldozes anyone that comes in his firing line. And if that wasn't enough, to supply us with an embarrassing hip/hop freestyle dance over the credits merely cements his status as a bloody awesome character! About half way through, the film gets repetitive with its characters stuck deep in the jungle just getting angrier and angrier at each other, losing the allure they had at the beginning, but Les Grossman, oh boy, saves the day! Spending time to see these heavyweight stars in action will interest a lot of people, but Iâ??m not sure many will expect what Tropic Thunder has in store for them, and when the film descends into farce on multiple occasions, it desensitizes you from enjoying it fully because the film fluctuates too often to do justice to such memorable characters.

The Verdict:

Powered by remarkable performances from Downey Jr. and Cruise, Tropic Thunder is indebted to its marvellous characters that keep the satire fresh even when the film loses its opening appeal.

â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â?? 6/10.