When I saw the trailer for Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder I knew I had to see it. It was hilarious! Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr, and Jack Black, together. Interesting. Well, now that I’ve seen the movie I must say, it was a little bit of a downer.

Don’t get me wrong, Tropic Thunder is funny, and overall I liked the movie, but it was very slow at times, and some of the jokes fall flat.
Still I was impressed by Ben Stiller’s directing and the fact that he co-wrote the flick with actor Justin Theroux. But the cast is what makes this movie fun, led by Downey Jr as Kirk Lazarus, an Australian actor who is such a method actor that he undergoes a procedure to appear to be African American. Downey Jr obviously has a lot of fun with the role, walking a thin-thin line without being totally racially inappropriate. Ben Stiller is good too, but I wasn’t crazy about his character, and action star with some skeletons in his professional closet. Jack Black actually surprised me by not being overly obnoxious. He did a pretty good job.

Danny McBride, Steve Coogan and Nick Nolte are all great in smaller roles. I really like McBride and it looks like he’s on his way to character actor greatness!
Jay Baruchel and Brandon Jackson were both really good as well. They held up very well with the better known stars. I was impressed.
However, two different superstars steal every scene they’re in. Tom Cruise and Matthew McConaughey are frakking hilarious! Especially Cruise, because he is unrecognizable. Very funny!

So there it is. Tropic Thunder is a funny movie if not a great one. Maybe it’s just a rental. I dunno. Up to you.