when the director dies first

Rating: 5/10 (28 September 2009)

Funny things can happen when the director dies first while filming a movie. One thing for example would be that nobody believes the death is real, as it happens with the gang of failed actors parachuted in the South East Asia jungle while filming a Vietnam war action film, which will have to face real nowadays drug traffickers with their dubious acting skills as only means of survival. The result can be as in real cinema a blessing, a catastrophe, or something in the middle.
'Tropic Thunder' is that thing in the middle. It's a funny idea.The film starts with a previews-like generic which is one of the best I have seen recently. It gathers a team of comic actors (Stller, Downley Jr., Black) that would each be able to carry a comic film by themselves. It includes one of the best cameo appearances that I have ever seen.
And yet ... it is the supporting stuff that does not really work and does not connect well. The too many cinema associations and quotes are lost in the sound of explosions and gunshots. The irreverence of the politically incorrectness is expected. The too many changes of face and faith of the characters result in eventually having us not caring really too much about them. It's still a fair entertainment, not too funny but not completely failing easy. For Ben Stiller the director, if he wants to cross the line and stay behind the camera more often he needs to design more carefully the emotions of his other characters, or he simply needs to get even more crazy.