Starting Out Strong
The first two minutes of Tropic Thunder take you by surprise, as you may get it confused with part of the previews before the film. But don’t fast forward, or you’ll miss some hilarious previews of movies that we can only hope will never get produced. I won’t spoil the details, save to say that I still wince when I think of Robert Downey Jr. saying, “Forgive me father, I’ve been a bad… bad boy.”
After that, we are treated to what looks to be a retro scene from a battle in Vietnam. Guns are blazing, people are dying, and soldiers are fighting tooth and nail to get back to the chopper in the most cliché of war movie ways when the scene is broken by Tugg Speedman’s (Ben Stiller) frustration with the over emotional performance of Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.). “Director” Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) tries to pull his cast together but through a series of over emotional and flamboyant gestures he not only frustrates his actors into walking off the set, but he also inadvertently signals the special effects man (a flamboyant and outlandish character himself) into setting off a costly series of explosions setting the making of the film back over a month just four days into shooting.
After catching a seething verbal lashing from producer Les Grossman (Tom Cruise), Damien Cockburn listens to the film’s grizzled writer and character base Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte) and decides to strip the actors away from the pampering which has spoiled them to the point of being nearly impossible to direct, and throw them guerrilla style into the jungle. Now with only a map, and the incompetent leadership of Tugg Speedman, five actors unwittingly face the dangers of real drug smuggling Vietnamese terrorists while thinking that they are merely filming a movie.
Bold Characters, Brassy Stereotypes
Every character in this movie seems to be over the top, save for the upstart new actor Kevin Sandusky (Jay Baruchel). Fake director Damien Cockburn is both passionate and incompetent, making bad decision after bad decision and steadily advancing the plot of this film. Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) is a drug addicted washed up comedian who made a career on flatulence in a parody of Eddie Murphy’s career that would make any movie goer chuckle. Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) is a rapper who is more concerned with product placement of some very suggestively named products than in making a period accurate film.
The film really centers around Tugg Speedman and Kirk Lazarus. Tugg Speedman is a former action hero whose films aren’t as popular as they once were. He tried to get a nod from the academy taking a serious and artistic role in a movie about a mentally handicapped person which flopped at the box office, and now he is showing his insecurities while paired against the more successful Kirk Lazarus.
Kirk on the other hand is completely dedicated to his role. If you’ve not yet seen Tropic Thunder you may still be aware of the press this film got because of the fact that Robert Downey Jr. is featured in a very controversial role as an Australian man who undergoes a skin pigmentation alteration procedure. Basically, he wears black face to play the role of an African American even though he is painfully white.
While I enjoyed the comedic elements of each of the over the top characters of Tropic Thunder, it was really Robert Downey Jr.’s performance that set this film apart for me. His total dedication to the stereotype his character was portraying was hilarious! Before you cry racism, remember… it’s just a movie! It wasn’t done in a hateful manner, and had a breakthrough moment where real African American actor Alpa Chino calls Kirk Lazarus to the carpet for his “Chicken George” portrayal of a black man.
Equal Opportunity Comedy
This film takes a lot of punches. Before you have a chance to be offended when it’s your turn to be made fun of, you’ll lose yourself in laughter at the next ridiculous scene. While a gambit of sensitive topics are covered; homosexuality, race, mental retardation, murder, drug addiction, and the ever controversial Blu Ray vs. HD-DVD history discussion, they are approached in a light hearted manner. This movie doesn’t take itself too seriously at all, and I don’t recommend anyone else try to either.
In one sequence we see actors starting to get a Hollywood version of post traumatic stress disorder as we see Tugg Speedman having to come back to reality after being brain washed into wanting to actually live life as a captive version of his unsuccessful “Simple Jack” movie character. Kirk Lazarus identifies with him, as he too is so deeply engrossed in his character that even off screen he talks and acts as his character might.
Another fantastic moment is a Les Grossman dance sequence. Tom Cruise was fantastic in his foul mouthed and once again over the top roll. I got the sensation that Hollywood may actually be populated by a bunch of out of touch, megalomaniacal, fat, rich media moguls by the natural aggression that seemed to spit forth from Tom’s character.
Two Discs – A Ton of Features!
After the release of Blu Ray players, expectations have grown for what audiences get when they purchase a movie. In Tropic Thunder there is little disappointment.
Disc 1 Includes:
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The Directors Cut of Tropic Thunder
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Filmmaker and Cast Commentaries
Disc 2 Includes:
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Before the Thunder
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The Hot LZ Blowing S#%t Up
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Designing the Thunder
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The Cast of Tropic Thunder
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Rain of Madness Dispatches from the Edge of Madness
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Deleted and Extended Scenes
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Alternate Ending
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MTV Movie Awards – Tropic Thunder
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Full Mags
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Video Rehearsals
I have to say that I was very satisfied with almost everything in this package EXCEPT the fact that the original theatrical version was not included. I didn’t understand the reason for the substitution of a few scenes as well. One in particular, in theaters Robert Downey Jr. mentions that he has to, “take a pee pee” is substituted in the directors cut with a more vulgar and less humorous line. Several substitutions seem to have been made in this directors cut which didn’t add to the cinematic experience.
I believe that DreamWorks let a lot stay on the cutting room floor that Director Ben stiller cut back into the film needlessly. Sometimes I wonder if directors and screenwriters realize that a film can be a great film without so much vulgarity. Then again, marketing people know there are some demographics more likely to buy an Unrated version of a movie even if it’s not much different from it’s R rated theatrical counterpart.