Tropic Thunder
By Marshall Fine
Rating:
Who's in it: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr.
What's it about: While making a war movie in the Southeast Asian jungle, movie stars encounter a real drug gang- and think it's part of the movie.
Star power: Directed by Stiller, this large-scale action-comedy makes wicked fun of actors, focusing on their two biggest weaknesses: vanity and insecurity. The constant me-me-me keeps them from realizing that the world has intruded on their fantasyland until it's too late - and then they really have to scramble. Each of the stars gets big handfuls of show-off moments, particularly Stiller as an action star whose grosses are dropping and Black, as a drug-addled comedian forced to go cold turkey in the jungle. Downey dazzles as an Australian who's playing an African-American and who never drops character. But the real scene-stealer here is the unbilled Tom Cruise, as a bald, tubby studio executive (with body-hair issues) who bellows obscenities at everyone - even people who are kissing his fanny. Sure, this movie's too long - but it gets a second wind and finishes strong.
Long story short: This comedy brings some 'Tropic' heat.
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