"Don't look now, you've got some real tears going. That's the stuff that accolade's made of."
- Osiris

In an age where Hollywood’s stock is not exactly as high as it has been in the past, it helps to know that the folks in tinseltown still have the ability to laugh at themselves. At least that is the notion that some might conjure up after seeing Tropic Thunder. But don’t kid yourself. This is still the same industry that made Lions for Lambs. Ben Stiller’s 1st directorial stint since 2001’s mostly stagnant Zoolander is a sharp comedy that parodies not just movies you might have seen before, but the entire movie-going experience itself.
This “movie about the movies” tells the story of a troupe of actors on location to shoot abig budget Vietnam War film based on an ex marine’s allegedly true memoir. When the five actors are dropped off in the middle of the jungle by their eccentric European director, they are forced to become the actual soldiers that they are portraying. The film is a biting satire of the entire movie industry, complete with fake coming attractions, and a whole slue of spoofed war movies. There is virtually no “archetype” in the film business that is left off of writer/director/star Ben Stiller’s hit list. All of the Hollywood star stereotypes are represented in the film’s main characters. There is the action star who despite his best efforts, can’t seem to get the bill in more dramatic roles (Stiller), the goofball comic whose flatulence ridden joke movies are mostly busts (Jack Black), and the over the top method actor (an impressive performance from Robert Downey Jr.) who goes to extreme albeit ridiculous lengths to effectively portray his roles.
The average viewer having paid attention to the pre-release buzz might have a few lingering questions: Is it vulgar? Yes. Is it excessive? Definitely. Is it funny? Mostly. The wickedly satirical screenplay rescues the film from becoming another “stupid” comedy in the vein of Naked Gun or Airplane! and is genuinely clever as well. There are many recognizable scene parodies laced within the plot, and the action sequences are surprisingly well executed. A star-studded line up of cameos highlights the film’s more enjoyable moments, including an unrecognizable Tom Cruise as the foul-mouthed studio exec. who relentlessly pushes his film crew’s buttons and pulls strings from his US office. Cruise’s role couldn’t have come at a better time for the seasoned actor who as of late, has done more to hurt the public opinion of his character than some actors can muster up in a whole lifetime.
The film undoubtedly has its flaws, mainly in Black who brings little to the comedic table. Downey Jr’s performance, while impressive begins to run dry from all of the relentless yet folksy diatribes the script employs. While the jokes don’t always deliver, it is the satire that sustains Thunder in letting the audience in on the joke, lambasting the industry that we all too often love to hate. What Stiller reminds us so well though, is that despite every thing about Hollywod that irritates us, from the industry’s annual self-congratulatory awards ceremony, to the myriad of stars reaching for some kind of soap-box to propel them into the stratosphere of actors who “care”, we can’t live without the movies. Perhaps the biggest if not the only huge accomplishment of Thunder is in confirming the movie industry’s uncanny ability to, despite its reputation, get us to the box offices. Even when the joke is on them.

3/5