Tropic Thunder
Ben Stiller’s latest comedy satire Tropic Thunder ought to have been a classic given the amount of money spent on it. Unfortunately, I didn’t laugh nearly as much as I would have liked, and therefore took a much dimmer view of the comic but gruesome violence, profanity, and general insanity. John Landis pulled a similar, albeit cleaner, PG rated trick in 1986 with Three Amigos, and although that was no classic, it’s a better film.
To be fair, the premise is good. A bunch of egotistical actors making a war film are given a harsh dose of reality when accidentally left in the middle of a genuine war, all the time thinking they are still filming. The lead actors – Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Jay Baruchel, Brandon T Jackson and especially Robert Downey Jr – are all good, and there are amusing cameos from the likes of Steve Coogan and a near unrecognisable Tom Cruise.
There are also some very funny moments, particularly at the beginning with faux trailers that introduce us to the various actors. The high levels of bloody violence seen in recent war films are also spoofed to amusing effect, and one bit in the middle involving a Panda had me in genuine hysterics. But the movie is way too long, and feels bloated.
The problem with reviewing a film like Tropic Thunder for a moral/spiritual perspective, is that in saying what I must say – ie that it has no redeeming value whatsoever – will turn off one audience, and turn on another. A certain recipient of these epistles told me that whenever I say I cannot in good conscience recommend a particular film, it automatically goes to the top of his must-see list. Therefore, this person now has another film he will go out of his way to view, whereas many of the rest of you will no doubt avoid it on account of its filthy language, gruesome (if occasionally amusing) violence, and general unpleasantness. Personally, I would be more forgiving if I had laughed more, but unfortunately Tropic Thunder is patchy at best.
Simon Dillon, October 2008.
