An epic comedy that is not to be missed

Russo Rating: 9/10

Event comedies don’t come around very often. When they do, they should be celebrated. Ten years in the making, Tropic Thunder is that special blend of action and comedy shaken just right to give the explosive blend of hilarity you’d expect from writer/director/star, Ben Stiller.

Filming on location in Vietnam, several of Hollywood’s top celebrities have gathered to shoot an epic war film from a new, artsy filmmaker. When the hotshot director becomes overwhelmed by the massive production, he sends his lead actors into the jungle to finish off the rest of the movie guerilla style. Things quickly go awry as this ragtag group of movie stars stumble upon a heroine plant filled with hostile bad guys, forcing the talent to use their acting skills to survive.

While the movie within a movie certainly does its fair share of poking fun at Hollywood, leaving audiences who don’t know what a Key Grip is somewhat in the dust, there is literally some goofball humor for everyone in Tropic Thunder. Whether it is Tom Cruise’s fantastic cameo or Robert Downey Jr.’s hilarious skin pigmentation, Tropic Thunder is filled with laughs. Plus the film offers some phenomenal, even beautiful action sequences, which make this an epic comedy that is not to be missed.

Now on DVD and BluRay, Tropic Thunder comes home in a must-have set with near flawless audio and video and an array of informative and hilarious extras. Stiller’s first foray into big action, the filmmaker made sure to document everything from table reads to how explosions were executed. While the behind the scenes footage is fantastic, several fictional features should make fans roll on the floor with laughter.

Big, outrageous comedies only come once in a long while, and Tropic Thunder is epic in scale. Paramount Home Entertainment continues their fantastic BluRay lineup with another near flawless release, making Tropic Thunder a must own for fans of this outrageous event comedy.