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Jeff_Wilder [ 7.5 ]
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I expected to like Tropic Thunder more than I ultimately did. On one hand, I did enjoy the gleefully politically incorrect humor, the performance by Robert Downey Jr and the Tom Cruise character. The TIVO gig was alos hilarious
On the other hand, the references to classic Vietnam films like Platoon and Apocalypse Now come off more as quotation than legitimate parody. More problematic is that Tropic Thunder seems to embody the classic maxim that satire is what closes on Saturday night. There have been some satiric movies that managed to transcend the period in which they were released and still be just as funny and/or on target decades later (Dr. Strangelove, Network). But there have been many more that fell into irrelevance quickly (The GW Bush/American Idol skewering American Dreamz seems more ancient than the stone age only 6 years after its release). It's to Tropic Thunder's credit that it doesn't fall into the latter category yet it can't quite reach the level of the former either. Worth your time. But not the comedic masterpiece so many people seem to think it is either.
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DokBrowne [ 8.0 ]
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Despite the flat characterizations and various crowd-requisite "big" laughs (I saw this on DVD instead of in theaters, but I think a lot of the comedy, particularly the conceptually awesome yet ultimately underwhelming Tom Cruise bit would've been more enjoyable if shared with an enthusiastic audience), this has lots of hilarious material, one great performance (Robert Downey Jr. we hardly knew ye), a bunch of appreciably endearing other ones (how many more times need Nick Nolte and Matthew McConaughey prove how vastly underutilized they are, Hollywood? Get on that!), a couple perfect shock gags (prosthetic Steve Coogan head was probably the movie's funniest moment for me), and it zeroes in on countless Hollywood foibles, not just wide-open targets. An applause-worthy addition to the broad spoof canon, the Judd Apatow canon, the Frat Pack canon, the Hollywood satire canon, and Ben Stiller's under-appreciated filmography. With its play on narrative convention, absurdism, slapstick, and litany of A-list celebrity cameos, it reminded me of "Austin Powers", but is thankfully wittier and edgier by far. Nevertheless, in one way or another it was this year's "Austin Powers"
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| Weighted Rating | : 6.8 |
| No. Ratings | : 8 | |
| No. Reviews | : 5 | |
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