One long skit that is intermittently funny

Rating: 6/10 (25 August 2008)

The movie starts off very funny and then loses a bit of its overall story-steam. In fact, the most fun to be had is with the "trailers" of coming attractions that starts the show. These are short, humorous takes on the portentous trailers of portentous Hollywood movies.
As for the movie itself: Very funny scenes pop up throughout, yet things get boring because the whole thing is never really more than a parody -- there's nothing remotely real about the story or characters. Downey is absolutely fantastic; the other actors, competent, but never anything more than a foil for his abilities. Stiller gets old and annoying in many of his scenes, but hats off to him for attempting something above a Will Ferrell comedy. There is something really sublime in the way Downey's argument with the real black actor points out the posturing involved in all racial stereotyping -- including that done by the "stereotypes" themselves.
Best enjoyed as a DVD, or Tivo-ed, where the annoying POW scenes can be FF-ed through and the bits with Downey enjoyed.