Dir. Ben Stiller
I hate Ben Stiller. Really, I do. I have turned off more movies with that man in them than any other actor I can think of off the top of my head. True, there are some movies that have him in it that I enjoyed, and one that I love (Mystery Men,) but generally I turn his movies off, out of boredom or annoyance. He wrote, directed, starred in, and produced Tropic Thunder. Shoot, he probably tucked it in at night and read it a bedtime story -- all of this putting a big "KEEP OUT" sign for the likes of me.
I never would have seen this movie under normal circumstances: not a lot there for me to look forward to, based on the preview. Full of low humor, like fart jokes. Don't get me wrong, I have a crude sense of humor, but I generally like a little brainpower involved. On the other hand, I do love Robert Downey, Jr., and I do love movies about the movie industry, so I ended up going to see it, with EXTREMELY low expectations. That�s putting it mildly, I actually went in expecting to hate it.
I can't remember the last time I have laughed so long, so hard at a movie. They had little fake previews at the very beginning, and the one with Robert Downey, Jr. alone was worth the price of admission.
Mostly what it made fun of was the movie business, and the actors therein. You had action actors, method actors, and stupid fart joke movie actors. (I was thrilled that the fart jokes were only used to show how NOT FUNNY they are.) Producers and agents got lambasted, too. Movies made from books, yep. Rap stars becoming movie stars, check. Stars endorsing popular causes, you bet. The only thing they didn't cover was women's role in movies, which I'm sure will be covered in any sequels that are made. Oh, movie franchises, yeah,they lead off with that one.
Other things they make fun of include race relations, drug addicts, homosexuals, and the heroin trade in the Golden Triangle. The "retarded" references that are the big controversy of the movie are in relation to actors playing the roles of retarded characters, which is making fun of actors, not retarded people, just so you know.
I was amazed at how funny, irreverently funny, this show was. I have a hard time rating it, because I can see someone not finding it funny, or even down-right offensive, but I have come to the conclusion that I have rate it based on my enjoyment of it, and not what other people may or may not find funny.
I rate it: Full Price.