AltWeeklies Wire
What's in a Skin Color? The Perils of Ethnic Impersonation in Moviesnew
Why is it that Robert Downey Jr. is celebrated for his clever meta-performance in Tropic Thunder, while Ben Stiller is attacked for denigrating a whole group of people in the same film? The line between respect and offense in cases like these is razor-thin, and it's not always easy to see where it should be drawn.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
08-22-2008 |
Movies
Blackface vs. Black Faces: It's the claim of authenticity that's truly offensivenew
It isn't the act of painting the hands and face black that's offensive and harmful. It's the claim of authenticity that goes along with that act, the assumption that something real and true is being represented when someone darkens his face, paints on a huge red mouth, and shucks and jives on a stage. So Al Jolson in The Jazz Singer is offensive, as is C. Thomas Howell in Soul Man. But so is Samuel L. Jackson in Black Snake Moan, Terence Howard in Hustle & Flow, and 50 Cent on any given day.
Charleston City Paper |
Conseula Francis |
08-20-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ben Stiller, Tropic Thunder
'Tropic Thunder' and 'Henry Poole Is Here': Mock and Loadnew
Tropic Thunder is a comedic beast that's nearly impossible to dissect, while Henry Poole is Here is a heavy-handed flick about an atheist who has faith forced upon him.
Washington City Paper |
Tricia Olszewski |
08-18-2008 |
Reviews
If Only 'Tropic Thunder' Were as Naughty as the P.C. Protesters Complainnew
Tropic Thunder arrives in theaters hyped, virally marketed and decreed by no less an authority than The New York Times as the naughtiest little studio release of the summer-movie season.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
08-18-2008 |
Reviews
Cinematic Slaughternew
Tropic Thunder delightfully features big stars giving the middle finger to their Hollywood bosses.
Tucson Weekly |
Bob Grimm |
08-15-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ben Stiller, Tropic Thunder
'Tropic Thunder': Apocalypse, and How!new
Instead of entering the jungle to find the heart of darkness, Ben Stiller goes in to take aim at the Achilles heel of Hollywood: its utter pomposity and self-importance.
Austin Chronicle |
Marjorie Baumgarten |
08-14-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ben Stiller, Tropic Thunder
'Tropic Thunder' Wasn't the Expected Rambo-style Satirenew
What I got, and what I should have expected, was a rather well-produced and spectacle-driven broad action-comedy that should satisfy anyone not expecting a wealth of subtle or subversive humor. Duh, right?
San Antonio Current |
Brian Villalobos |
08-13-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ben Stiller, Tropic Thunder
'Tropic Thunder': When Satire Goes Badnew
Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Tom Cruise all play parodies of recognizable Hollywood types—the lunkhead, the coke fiend and the unscrupulous executive—but who exactly is Tom Cruise in the position to lampoon? This is a satire of movie-industry excess constructed by the very people made fat and happy by that industry.
Willamette Week |
Aaron Mesh |
08-13-2008 |
Reviews
Ben Stiller Abandons Subtle Satire for Broad Gags in 'Tropic Thunder'
Stiller isn't ego-less enough to really let Hollywood have it, and he's too much of a clown to get sophisticated about it. Tropic Thunder provides random goofiness without an identity, or much of a point.
Salt Lake City Weekly |
Scott Renshaw |
08-11-2008 |
Reviews
