Tropic Thunder

Tropic Thunder is the kind of movie I usually hate. Jammed up with stars anywhere they can fit them, relying on costume for the movie's biggest gags, and Ben Stiller is prominently involved. Sounds like the latest crappy version of Austin Powers, no? Despite all of these things working decidedly against it, Tropic Thunder is a total blast.

It's a very "hollywood" film (something else I usually dislike), in that most of the characters are based on either specific hollywood giants or a particular category of hollywood sleezeballs. Some of these feel a little old-hat (particularly Stiller's character), but other characters (particularly Robert Downey Jr and Tom Cruise) are so ridiculously over the top-- and yet played with such commitment-- that they evolve past simple satire and move into the realm of really compelling comic characters.

And frankly, those two really carry the movie. Stiller has some surprisingly decent moments as well, but really, the reason to see this movie is for Downey and Cruise. They're just fucking hysterical, to put it simply. What's fun about these characters-- and to a certain extent, everyone else in the movie-- is that they are absolutely insane, and yet you can see how their internal logic works, or at least why that character thinks it works. It's a perfect marriage of absurdity and observation, and while I firmly believe that Downey and Cruise are the strongest performances and best examples of this, it's also definitely true for Jack Black, Ben Stiller, Matthew McConaughey (actually pretty good as Stiller's agent), and Nick Nolte (a pleasure to watch as the Vietnam vet with a secret. There are also nice performances from Steve Coogan, Bill Hader, Danny McBride and fun cameos from Lance Bass to Jon Voight. Clearly Stiller emptied his rolodex for this one.

Speaking of Stiller, the guy definitely deserves some props for this one. Personally, I've always felt like he was a one trick pony (his best movies are probably Something About Mary and Meet The Parents, which are basically identical comedically) but here he does a nice job of staying away from that stupid brand of "awkward humor". His character work is just ok-- although I love his portrayal of "Simple Jack", his character's attempt at a character piece about a retarded boy-- but I have to give the man some credit for his directing. He gets simply stunning performances out of most of the cast, particularly (not to sound like a broken record) Downey and Cruise. He does a nice job of mixing in some fun action scenes to keep the movie's pace up, and there are some fun Apocalypse Now nods in there too.

All in all, the movie is extremely sharp. It's just a little bit light on the laughs-- it's the kind of movie that tickles your brain more than your gut-- but it honestly didn't bother me at the time. The only other real complaint I could see making is that it's so hollywood-y, but I think that's simply a reflection of the genre, and far from being distracting, provided most of my favorite jokes. Clearly this movie is a labour of love for everyone involved, and that's always enjoyable to watch.

And dear god, Downey and Cruise alone are worth the price of admission. This one is way better than we expected.

Scores:
Downey: 9/10
Cruise: 10/10
Stiller: 7/10
Black: 7/10
Directing: 8/10
Writing: 7.5/10
Overall (not an average): 8.3/10