Tropic Thunder

Dass ich von Anfang bis Ende so viel und so aufrichtig gelacht habe, ist mir schon lange nicht mehr passiert. Ben Stiller trifft ins Schwarze. Schon allein für die ersten Trailer verdient Tropic Thunder fünf Sterne! (15.03.2011)

Das komödiantische Potenzial von Jack Black wurde nicht genutzt. Seine Figur hätte auch ein No-Name-Darsteller spielen können und dem Film hätte es nicht geschadet. Ben Stiller ist nur dann witzig, wenn er "einen Kerl spielt, den er in einem anderen Film gespielt hat". Robert Downey ist nur dank seines Akzents cool. Auf einen guten Witz in 20 Minuten kommen zehn krampfhafte Witze oder Nicht-Witze. Tropic Thunder hat in mir ähnliche Gefühle wie das Beobachten von Jakubiskos Statist*innen in Bathory - Die Blutgräfin hervorgerufen. Konzeptlos, schwerfällig. Das Einzige, was hier überdurchschnittlich und ein Volltreffer ist, ist Tom Cruise. Ich mag crazy Komödien, Parodien, Kriegsfilme und die Kritik des Hollywoods, aber sorry, Steaks müssen bei mir durchgebratenen sein. (21.09.2008)

Stiller knows very well that making a parody doesn’t mean making one-to-one copies of one scene after another, but rather about well scattered nods and making sure that the movie works as a whole. You need to be skilled enough to shoot it at least as well as the original. This “anti" Hollywood Tropic Thunder was no disappointment in that respect. But, as hard as it tries, it just isn’t funny. It simply tries too hard and turns out unnatural. It’s like Stiller missed his fellow Frat Packers and their chemistry and interplay. Maybe it should have set out on the journey to absolute absurdity that we know from Zoolander or Dodgeball rather than this rather vulgar normality. (18.09.2008)

Stiller is getting smarter and smarter, and he can make fun of things you thought everyone had already made fun of enough a long time ago. After the modeling industry, Hollywood is taking the hit with such vigor it's chilling if it's really true. The excellent technical aspects are just the cream on the cake, but the cherry on top is Tom Cruise - at least for having the courage to make such an ass of himself, and with such grace that I would really give him the Golden Globe! (29.12.2008)

During its premiere, I avoided Tropic Thunder by assuming it would be too much of a dejected commercial blockbuster that I wouldn't enjoy. When I saw it on TV later, I had to admit that I had unfairly judged Tropic Thunder to some extent, because it is an entertaining film, made and acted with ease. I can give it three stars with a clear conscience, but unfortunately, I won't go any higher. The film is funny, but not smart, simply because Ben Stiller doesn't have that type of personality. He is a comedian who doesn't aim higher than making the audience laugh and doesn't care about criticism or analyzing the system. It is not a sharp satire, even though it has the potential and knowledge of the film industry to do so. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was such a satire in its time or more recently Wag the Dog. Stiller prefers sometimes well-functioning, sometimes cheap, straightforward gags. If the film works well as a whole, it is thanks to the star-studded cast, who are clearly enjoying themselves and making fun of their celebrity status. Tropic Thunder parodies specific scenes from films like Apocalypse Now or, especially, Platoon. But at the same time, it is a parody of the manners of favored acting aces and their perpetual dilemma between lowbrow consumer production, which sustains them, and the desire for artistic self-realization and appreciation from professional critics. In the second half, I felt that the film lost not so much its pace, but rather its charm and wit. Much more could have been pulled from all that mystification and confusion... Overall impression: 65%. (04.12.2011)