The Robert Downey Jr Film Guide
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The Robert Downey Jr Film Guide |
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Tropic Thunder (2008) |
Summary |
A group of self-absorbed actors get lost in the jungle while making a Vietnam War movie. |
Direction |
Ben Stiller |
Downey Factor |
High |
Character |
Kirk Lazarus, an Award-winning method actor tackling the role of a black soldier. |
Looks |
Mostly in blackface, with brief moments of blue eyes and blond hair. |
Performance |
Daring, hysterical and genius. Earned him Golden Globe and Oscar nominations. |
Accent |
Varies between somewhat Southern US and Australian |
Line |
Check it out--Dustin Hoffman, Rain Man, look retarded, act retarded, not retarded. Counted toothpicks, cheated cards. Autistic, sure. Not retarded. You know Tom Hanks--Forrest Gump. Slow, yes. Retarded, maybe. Braces on his legs. But he charmed the pants off Nixon and won a ping-pong competition. That ain't retarded. Peter Sellers--Being There. Infantile, yes. Retarded, no. You went full retard, man. Never go full retard. You don't buy that? Ask Sean Penn, 2001, I Am Sam. Went full retard, went home empty handed. |
Dies, Gay or Villain |
No, no, no. |
Other Actors |
Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Brandon T. Jackson, Jay Baruchel, Steve Coogan, Matthew McConaghey, Tom Cruise, Nick Nolte |
Connection |
Ben Stiller in Black and White and That's Adequate. Tobey Maguire in Wonder Boys |
RDJ Says |
We're not just sending up the industry, we're kind of, in a way, destroying any possibility of us having a leg to stand on in the future ... I thought it was a ridiculous and potentially incendiary idea, but I blame it on Dreamworks and Ben Stiller ... I felt like, I want to work with Ben and Jack, but my way into the movie is I've got to be tarred and feathered for three months and maybe have my reputation destroyed. That was my fear. And then we started doing makeup tests, and it was like Mr. Potato Face: ''Can we take that wig off and put these teeth in? Now put this on. Now put that on.'' But by the time we were finally in rehearsals, I knew I had it ... I have been so wantonly, flagrantly humiliated [in my personal life] that anything that could happen as a result of a movie doesn't even register ... We'd meet at 7 AM and we'd just power through the hour and a half, two hours of [make-up] application. At that point, other cast members would start rolling in to have a nice leisurely breakfast. |
Location |
Southeast Asia |
Hot Link |
In addition to the Official Site, there are 17 microsites referencing characters, places and films within the film. Kirk Lazarus (Character) Tugg Speedman (Character) Jeff Portnoy (Character) Alpa Chino (Character) Alpa Chino's MySpace (Character) Kevin Sandusky's MySpace (Character) Cody Effects (Character) Rain of Madness (Film) Satan's Alley (Film) The Fatties: Fart 2 (Film) Scorcher 6 (Film) The Panda Relocation Foundation Booty Sweat (Product) The Peck Agency (Tugg Speedman's Agent) Make Pretty Skin Clinic Combato Books (Publisher of Tropic Thunder Book) |
Release |
13 August 2008 |
Availability |
Available on DVD in regions 1, 2, and 4; also on Blu-Ray |
Foreign Titles |
Argentina: Una Guerra de película (A War of Film) Brazil: Trovão Tropical (Tropical Thunder) Croatia: Tropska grmljavina (Tropic Thunder) Estonia: Troopiline kõu (Tropic Thunder) France: Tonnerre sous les Tropiques (Thunder in the Tropics) Greece: Tropiki kataigida Poland: Jaja w tropikach (Eggs in Tropics) Portugal: Tempestade Tropical (Tropical Storm) Turkey: Tropik firtina |
Rotten Tomatoes |
83% fresh | 209 reviews |
Critical View |
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Like a postmodern magician, Downey shows how it's really done — without detracting from the pleasures available to those who don't care at all how it's done, just that the entertainment includes explosions. Even an outsider with no obsessive interest in, say, how to rig the fake blood and severed limbs of movie battle will love Downey's mid-gore Method struggle for character motivation. And all it takes to marvel, through non-PC tears of laughter, at the wisdom delivered by Downey about how to win an Oscar for portraying a handicap is a pulse. Manohla Dargis, New York Times: The pomposity of the Oscars is the hook, but it’s the word retard that provides the squirm. If Mr. Downey — who at this point in his career apparently can do no wrong, even in blackface — can’t make this bit work, it’s because the bit is unworkable. Anthony Venutolo, The Star-Ledger: At a time when even the New Yorker is having trouble selling irony, this is dangerous comedy. But Stiller and Downey clearly make the joke not about the impersonation, but the impersonator's cluelessness ... Never raising his voice from what he's convinced is an authentically "black" register, making every bit play like an inspired improvisation, he delivers the kind of comic turn that revived Johnny Depp's career in the first Pirates. Iron Man was nice, but don't be surprised if this one wins Downey a nomination. |
2 Reasons to See It |
1. It's a rare comedy full of hilarious self-absorbed characters who aren't blind to each others' flaws. 2. How else are you get all the references in those 17 microsites? |
Overall |
Hands down one of his best performances and the funniest movie he's ever done. A must-see. |
If You Like It |
You might also like Sherlock Holmes (2009), Soapdish (1991) |
Photos |
Video |