Tropic Thunder

I loathe Ben Stiller and I more than loathe Jack Black. I find both of these men to be criminals against comedy. They rank right below Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler as the most annoying comic actors working today. Why, oh why, would I even waste my time watching a movie that strongly featured both of these "comic talents?" The easy answer is Robert Downey Jr. I am not a Johnny-come-lately Downey Jr fan either. My love for his talent is long standing and I always knew he would be back on top. The longer answer to watching this movie involves a red band trailer and a little kid being tossed off of a bridge. The question was will Stiller and Black being annoying overshadow Robert Downey Jr? Well read on to find out.

Besides being the title of the movie we are watching Tropic Thunder is also the name of the movie being made within the movie. Tugg Speedman(Stiller) is an action star looking to revitalize his career after his action franchise has cooled off and his money making potential decreased (think Tom Cruise) and he needs Tropic Thunder to be a hit. Also on board is comic star Jeff Portnoy (Black). Portnoy is the star of The Fatties, a comedy where Portnoy is ina fat suit for every character and the whole premise is that fat people fart and it is funny. He also has a heroin addiction. Rounding out the trio of superstars is Kirk Lazarus( Downey Jr), an actor's actor. He is an Australian method actor who is well decorated with awards. In order to play the company's black character, Lazarus undergoes a surgery to make himself black and he spends the entire picture "talking black." The movie is not going well and the director is on edger and willing to do anything to make the movie better. He turns to Four-Leaf, the guy who wrote the book and is being played by Speedman) and Four-Leaf says they should drop the actors in the jungle and just shoot what really happens. Along the way the actors think they aren't maybe shooting a movie and Speedman is kidnapped, but thinks the whole thing is a movie.

The difference between satire and spoof is a very fine line, but essentially a spoof is just making fun of everything without really trying to make a point and a satire is trying to make a point. Tropic Thunder is a satire of Hollywood and a satire of the people whoa re in Hollywood. The actors get it, the studio executives get it, the agents get it, hell everyone gets it. And it is flat out hilarious. Everyone gets their moments to shine and that is a credit to Ben Stiller, the director of this mad-cap satire. Jack Black, usually too annoying to be funny, is annoying sure, but it works here. He spends most of the movie dying for some heroin and he plays it pretty hilarious. Still, as Speedman, is funny, sad, arrogant, ignorant and flat out funny. He really lets everyone else get the major laughs, and while he is doing his straight man thing, here it works again. Of course, the real star is Robert Downey Jr. It begins in the opening scene, a fake movie trailer, and it continues through the entire movie. Downey Jr is the single funniest thing I have seen this summer and his no fear approach to something that is down right offensive turns out to not be offensive, in my eyes. Black face is something that is looked at as a black eye on movie history, but what Downey Jr. does is beyond that. He plays Lazarus as a man who believes he is black in this movie and believed he was Irish in an Irish movie and so on. He almost breaks your heart towards the end, but the comedy he finds in every moment is flat out genius.

Now, the black face thing is not the thing catching the majority of the controversy, which is saying something. Stiller's character, Speedman, once played a character in a movie called "simple Jack." Jack was a mentally disabled person and Tropic Thunder has some fun with that. I have to say that I do not believe Stiller and company set out to offend disabled people or the people who champion the cause, but those people are offended. Nothing can be done about it at this point. The movie is out and the scenes featuring Simple Jack exists. However, they are probably the only scenes where the comedy doesn't work. Is it an easy joke? Of course it is, but that is not the reason it isn't funny, it just isn't. There are things about it that are funny. For example, Stiller and Downey Jr have an entire conversation where Downey says "Never go full retard." He points out Rainman and Forrest Gump as examples and I am Sam as an example of going "full retard" and not winning Oscar gold. It is a true and hilarious biting satire of Hollywood and of actors.

There are also some great cameos from the likes of Toby Maguire and Matthew McConaughey(taking over for Owen Wilson after Wilson tried to kill himself). Also, the supporting players Brandon T. Jackson (Hilarious as a rapper turned actor) Bill- always dependable-Hader and Jay Barachel all get moments to shine. They all bring something funny and interesting the movie. But, Tom Cruise may just revitalize his movie career with his stunning supporting role. Sadly the role was blown because it would have been a nice surprise, but the spoilers do not even do it justice. He gives one of the funniest, ballsy things I have seen anyone of his stature do in a long time. I am not someone who hates Cruise, in fact I love his work, but he needed this and I hope people see it and realize he does not take himself nearly as seriously as people think he does.

Comedies are a dime a dozen, but this one outshines most of them. It is always funny and always interesting. The comedy works, but so do the action sequences. I never would have expected a movie starring Jack Black and Ben Stiller could possibly be this funny, but it is. It so is.

Final Grade: A-