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“Tropic Thunder” is a brash, satiric take on the current status of Hollywood.

Well before “Tropic Thunder”premiered it was being dogged as a controversial comedy, and protesters began deriding the film in print and at premieres. So seeing the real thing was largely due to a slight curiosity.

Much to my surprise, the film is a brash, satiric take on the current status of Hollywood. And while at times the storyline can drag, it was evident that a lot of attention and good - albeit twisted - intentions went into making this movie.
The film begins with previews for fake films by the stars of the movie, and was one of the most humorous sections of the film. In one preview, Ben Stiller’s character, Tugg Speedman, plays a mentally retarded man who can speak to animals in a film aptly titled “Simple Jack,” while Robert Downey Jr., aka Kirk Lazarus, plays a monk with amorous eyes for fellow monk Tobey Maguire, in another.

On the surface, “Tropic Thunder” (the name of the film within the film, as well) is fairly straightforward - a visionary director wants to shoot a realistic war movie based on the memoirs of a hardened old soldier (Nick Nolte), but being weighed downed by a group of spoiled actors, he opts for a guerilla-esque filming shot on location in Southeast Asia. The tides turn when a real group of ‘guerillas’ attack the actors. Believing the whole experience is part of the filming, the actors play along.

As for the political incorrectness of the movie - at times it was cheap and somewhat crass, but as Downey’s character alludes, it is Hollywood’s demeaning portrayal of many stereotypes that makes the issues taboo.