Cinema Hype

So, it’s official: I will watch Robert Downey Jr. in basically anything. Romantic comedy with ensemble cast of displaced spirits romping around San Francisco? Check. Obnoxiously good post-modern noir mystery? Check. Big-budget comic-book adaptation with sardonic, crime-fighting playboy in metal suit? Check. Vietnam War/Hollywood metafilm comedy, in blackface? Double check. (Ally McBeal? Check. Oh, Larry Paul, you and your melancholy snowman! [...I know. Sorry about that.])

It’s really too bad about Tropic Thunder, though. It’s too bad the risk of it didn’t fully pay off, too bad Ben Stiller still hasn’t totally recovered his mojo, and especially too bad that so many funny moments are sprinkled in among such long stretches of boring crap. This was supposed to be Stiller’s redemption after the string of not-great movies over the past five years or so, especially since he directed and co-wrote it (along with Justin Theroux, who doesn’t appear in the movie but probably should)—proof that a truly funny and possibly incisive comedy came out of his brain might have strengthened a lot of people’s wavering enthusiasm for him, including my own. And it’s frustrating, because the comedy is definitely there…when it’s there. Other times? Less so, and anyway, even the funny parts might have fallen flat in the hands of a less ridiculously talented cast.

Ah, the cast. Thank goodness for all that talent. The most obvious winner here is my man Downey, who plays a white Australian playing a black American, and pulls it off like he’s not even trying. Even better is—POSSIBLY SURPRISING CASTING SPOILER AHEAD!—Tom Cruise, whose bald, foul-mouthed, bespectacled, hip-hop-loving performance should earn him at least a 16% rise in the (theoretical Hollywood) approval ratings. Remember when Tom had a sense of humor about, well, anything? (To be fair: Did those days actually exist, or is this just a fabricated memory?) It’s good to know he’s both able and willing to appear onscreen in anything less than epic, and to know that he still takes roles that give him something to do. I didn’t think I’d ever say this, but: Kudos, Tom. You make the movie, kind of. And then there’s Nick Nolte, who for all we know is just playing himself; Matthew McConaughey, who tore himself away from Kate Hudson and her star-breaking habits to actually be funny; and Stiller himself, who actually does a pretty good job. The only disappointing moment here, casting-wise, is Jack Black, who does a fine job with what he has, but is sorely underrepresented.

I think Tropic Thunder was supposed to be the new Zoolander (high praise at CHHQ; we love our gasoline fights), but somehow missed the mark by not having enough: enough plot, enough interesting characters, enough funny stuff, even though the existing funny stuff is really funny. It should have been better. Note to self: Next time, see Hamlet 2 instead.