News - Entertainment

Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008

'Tropic Thunder' is funny, but not a classic

If comedies could be judged solely on their potential to be funny, then “Tropic Thunder” could’ve been the “Citizen Kane” of the genre.

With a cast that includes Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr. and a made-up and overweight Tom Cruise, it would seem the laughs should be as plentiful as vines in the jungle.

Alas, potential does not a good movie make.

But while “Tropic Thunder” won’t go down as a comedy classic, it’s not void of laughs either.

Stiller stars in and directs the film about a group of self-absorbed actors working on a troubled war movie that’s supposed to be Oscar bait along the lines of “Platoon” or “Saving Private Ryan.”

But when the production troubles threaten to shut the movie down, the director opts to finish the movie “guerilla style” by sending his actors into the jungle on their own to achieve the raw realism he wants.

Naturally, this leads to trouble when the group comes across real drug lords who think they’re actually American DEA agents, leaving the actors on their own to escape.

The plot is humorous enough, but it’s the Stiller, Downey Jr. and Cruise characters who offer the most consistent comedy.

Stiller plays Tugg Speedman, an over-paid, over-hyped action star who’s becoming old news and who’s trying to jump-start his career after some box office duds. Speedman’s last attempt at serious drama was the film “Simple Jack,” the story of a mentally challenged farm hand, which proved to be a critical and financial bomb (We get to see clips from “Simple Jack” showing Stiller’s character going all out in a blatant attempt at Academy recognition. The scenes are admittedly humorous, though likely to offend some people.).

Downey Jr. plays Kirk Lazarus, a pretentious method actor known for totally immersing himself in a role, who undergoes a medical procedure to darken his skin so he can play a black sergeant in the movie-within-a-movie. So intense is Lazarus’ commitment to the role that he can’t break character even when he tries.

Then there’s Cruise’s turn as a hot-headed, profanity-spewing studio executive, which might be the most memorable character. For the part, which amounts to an extended cameo, Cruise barely resembles himself. He’s fat, bald and shows a penchant for hip-hop dancing. It’s the best character he’s played in a decade.

Of the rest of the cast, Black’s character — an overweight actor known for a series of gross-out films called “The Fatties” — is particularly disappointing. That’s a shame because the one-note role essentially wastes Black’s talents.

There’s enough in “Topic Thunder” to make it worthwhile. The movie seems as much a parody of war movie clichés as it is a stand-alone comedy. Overly gory (albeit comical) battle wounds, cheesy one-liners and forced, sappy emotional moments that’ve become staples in the war movie genre are all lampooned. But at times it’s hard to tell whether Stiller is lampooning or trying to make us laugh at something on its own merits, and a number of jokes fall flat.

Stiller has said “Tropic Thunder” is meant to show the comical excesses of Hollywood, the lengths to which actors and studios will go to win awards and notoriety. Despite this movie’s own excesses, we’re able to get the joke.

Cast: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Nick Nolte, Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey

Director: Ben Stiller

Rating: R for pervasive language including sexual references, violent content and drug material

Running time: 1 hour, 47 minutes

Grade: B-