Unique Comedy With Funny Moments

Rating: 6/10 (16 August 2008)

Tropic Thunder is not your typical comedy. From the previews you may venture it is merely a spoof on war films, but really it laughs at Hollywood itself. The jokes are obviously from Stiller, with his style firmly attached to the script. And, for a comedy, there were some beautiful filming locations; the filmography was top-notch.
Robert Downey Jr.'s performance is simply amazing, feeding off two different cultural stereotypes (african American and Australian). The true scene stealer, however, was Tom Cruise in his disturbing portrayal of movie executive Les Grossman. Stiller also was very good and Black and Nolte had their moments.
As with many comedies, this one had its funny moments. Perhaps it could have hit the belly harder with laughs, but it was okay. While I enjoy Matthew McCaunaughey, his performance was not noteworthy, and the film sorely missed Owen Wilson in that role.
My recommendation is to wait for the DVD, which will surely be filled with a lot of fun bonus material. In a packed house, this film might be a lot of fun with contagious laughter. I watched during a matinée with practically nobody else in the theater. With that said, I would rate this movie a 6.5 out of 10 stars...no half points in IMDb, however, so a 6 out of 10 stars.