Tropic Thunder

Rating: 8/10 (7 September 2008)

I was taken into the theater to see "Tropic Thunder" with some friends, and had heard the title before but had no idea what the film was about. At first I thought the film was just a comical parody of all the movies made documenting the Vietnam War period. How could Jack Black and Ben Stiller be serious about near death situations and meaningful relationships with colleagues? But when the sound effects faded away, the film became suddenly awkward and I was watching a movie of a crew making a movie about a book. Besides poking fun at Vietnam era war films, "Tropic Thunder" went to town on its satirical view of Hollywood; agents, attitudes, priorities, career decisions, thematic trends in movies, and acting methods. After you laugh about something, you say to yourself, "that's so true." With absolutely no expectations, I was greatly pleased and laughed the entire way through. So many surprises and little time to breathe, "Tropic Thunder" is definitely worth the $11.25 I paid for my ticket.