TROPIC THUNDER

[maikuu]

[Parksukchom]

Yes. I think he did it because if you want to act like him. You must have stammer speaking so it's not easy to do that. I like Alpa Chino because I like when he says something. When he speaks, it likes hip hop songs. He always irritate another people. I like the last scene. Before Speedman run[s] into helicopter. First, he said he doesn't want to go back he wants to stay here with his son. After that, the boy that he thought is his son use knife and stab on his neck. He run and throw that baby from the bridge and he tells his friend to destroy the bridge because they set up the bomb already. Finally he can go home.

I think this movie is a little silly but it's good for relaxing. So I i give this movie 7/10.


Teacher's note: I would like this author to focus on GPS, not just structure but also usage. For example, there are verb tenses that shift the time frame for no apparent reason. I have noticed that this writer has great skill in saying a lot with a few words, so I think he could become an outstanding writer with a few fixes in GPS. It seems that Brandon T. Jackson's character of Alpa Chino stands up very well next to the big name actors herein. Thanks for being the first to post a response. Well done!

--mike http://www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[mira_cle]

In fact, when I see SIMPLE JACK ,I don’t know what is the meaning of this role and I can’t understand what did the director want to express (embedded questions). Until I do some reserch on internet. This character do[es] make a good point about “special-needs” characterizations in Hollywood and it’s a little bit ironically. My favorite character in this film is Alpa Chino. I think he is really cute when he try to hide that he likes boy . This part also is the funniest moment in TROPIC THUNDER that I think. Alpa Chino is a kind-hearted man although he tries to act mean so I like him. He really attracts me. I don’t like this kind of movis so it won’t be a choice if I can choose which film I want to watch.

However I do love movie, I pay attention on it. I realize it’s not a normal comedy, there are some meaning behind it. For example their attitude to playing their role. They don’t even read the script and one of the man say that the script will read him. It’s really funny but it indicates that he is a arrogant man. After knowing the meanings I have mention above, I think TROPIC THUNDER is a great movie. All we have to do is comprehensive what director wants to say.

Thank you

Teacher's note: Thank you Miracle for a great post! It is always gratifying when a person allows themselves to be open to something outside their realm of comfort as this author seems to do in paying attention to a movie she would not have chosen on her own. Even though Tropic Thunder is not a film she might otherwise watch, she seems to experiences a level of surprise appreciation which may expand her general understanding of movies. She does a good job at pinpointing the essential element of several characters in the film, especially Alpa Chino. I tip my hat. . . Wait a minute, I don't have a hat. OK, thanks for your contribution.

--mike http://www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[Faisal0300]

No. It is very offensive. We can make a good point about "special needs" by different and appropriate way. For example, we can show their challenge and how helps them to be more creative and productive than other people. My favorite character in the movie is Alpa Chino. He has a good sense of humor that makes the movie a little funny and enjoyable. I think the movie is a little ridiculous because is difficult to mix action with comedy in the same movie. However, the movie was not so bad, and I give it 6/10.

Teacher's note: Thanks for covering all the bases in a concise manner.

--mike www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[HildaL]

I cannot firmly say that Simple Jack makes a good point about the Hollywood "special-need" characterization, but I believe that classic conversation between Krik and Tugg must have aroused some thoughts.

My favorite character in TROPIC THUNDER is Alpa Chino, the rapper. He made me laugh when he was seriously performing his rap song in front of the director. I think he's a cute guy pretending to be cool. For me, the funniest moment must be the scene that other people figuring out Alpa Chino liked Lance, who was also a man. Alpa Chino’s expression and gesture were so adorable . And I really like the moments when each of them figuring out Four Leaves got hands!

I have to admit that I was completely confused in the first half of the movie. Neither could I remember all the characters’ names nor could I get the point of the film. However, I was fully absorbed in the second class. It was fun in the ridiculous way as interesting lines and scenes came out in tense moments. And of course, it was more than a comedy that only aimed to make you laugh.

In fact, I definitely would not watch this film base on its poster and introduction . By the way, as a Chinese, I failed to understand almost all the Chinese in the movie !

Teacher's note: I think a lot of film viewers are confused by Tropic Thunder until they get the hang of all the characters. Consider that there are actors playing actors playing parts, some in several parts. Confusing indeed. I didn't really get Tropic Thunder until I viewed it several times. I recommend that you wait a couple months and watch this film again. You will understand it better, and you might notice how your listening skills in English have improved. Thanks for posting.

--mike www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[Amberlovesfilm]

My favorite character in the film is Tugg Speedman, the middle aged former Prince Charming, who was experiencing serious middle-life crisis as his popularity faded. Actually, I like Tugg since I feel that he is such a typical middle-aged Mr. Charming in Hollywood, just like Tom Cruise, who for years trying [tried] desperately to get rid of the idea that he was just a pretty face. And just like Cruise’s couch incident on Oprah’s show , Tugg’ s attempt to answer Talk Show’s questions in a serious manner turned out to be funny and sad. This really makes me sympathize with Tugg, Tom and all other middle-aged actors. It struck me that these actors were usually more innocent and fragile than other man of their age, and this circus industry they live in makes them less likely to really mature with age. It must feel like to be always trapped in high school.

As to Tugg’s character Simple Jack, I feel that it is an acute satire from Ben Stiller directed towards Hollywood’s “special-needs” characterization. A lot of actors and actresses featured the less represented in order to be taken seriously by the Academy Awards. And just like Kirk Lazarus pointed out, Oscar do[es] favor these kind of films for their humanity touch as long as they don't go "too far", which means that the depiction of the mentally- challenged must be warm, cute, and reasonable, tailoring to the taste of the public. However, this seems to me even more offensive since it is trying to idealizing the mentally-challenged rather than embracing them.

Teacher's note: What an insightful post IIMSS. I think this author gets it all right. Tugg is like Cruise, and Cruise finally finds a way to break free of his cute image, if only too late in his career. I also get the point that by not going "full retard," to garner Oscar accolades, you may be disenfranchising the very respect of those among us with special needs. Thanks for a cool post.

--mike http://www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[ningshuangchao]

Tropic thunder, a typical Hollywood comedy, depict a group of actors who have been working in the Hollywood business for many years play in a Viet Nam movie. Since they are too spoiled to finish the movie, the director decides to let them play in the real situation. At last, all the actors succeed in transcending themselves and finding themselves.

When it comes to the character, my favorite one is Tugg Speedman, a tarnished star. It seem that he is really a hard working actor, trying to find the real way to act but unfortunately, no one appreciate his performance except the drug gangs. Under this circumstance, Tugg does not even want to leave the village even the drug dealers force him to perform and tortured him. He can own the self-made Oscar statuette and gain the sense of achievement at least. This resonate with audience, the sense of achievement bring us joy and make us satisfied. However, he realize that he has to lead the team and back to the real life at last, that is how he transcends himself.

The funniest moment must be the moment I suddenly realize the ugly, short, bold guy is the famous prince charming--Tom Cruise! Since it is so difficult to associate this little guy with the one in the Mission: Impossible. I guess it is the great contrast that becomes the reason why it is so hilarious. Especially seeing him dancing in the end of the movie, it would totally worth the money if I went to the cinema to see this movie.

Teacher's note: First off, let me say this author has submitted a well-syntaxed piece of writing, hardly an error. The setup is concise and complete. Author makes a well supported contention in favor of Ben Stiller's tortured character, who finally learns to act by making it real. It's always a joy to hear how a viewer first discovers that non other than Tom Cruise plays the notorious Less Grossman. Thanks for a cool post.

--mike www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[jasper]

More than a comedy

First of all, I have to say that Tropic Thunder is a great comedy. It starts with the best fake-trailers ever. I even try to search these movies through imdb.com. These trailers indicate the style of this movie: star cast, black humor and ironic story-telling. It’s hilarious to see Tom Cruise dancing on the screen and I’m really surprised at the make-up skills. What’s more, the ghost Tugg Speedman kills is a cute panda in fact, after that, he wears a panda hat to hide himself in the tropic forest. This setting is really interesting.

Some of the scenes are amazing. For example, the helicopter explodes, fighting in Vietnam village and so on.

Tropic Thunder is a film that understands biting satire. It sets out to insinuate the very people that made the film industry possible. Movie producers do not care about their actors. Movie directors could not control his cast. The story written by four leaves, admired by a lot of people, is finally proved to be an imaginary story. All these are closely related to Hollywood current situation. So it is an obvious satire. It is difficult to balance satire and comedy but Tropic Thunder is a big success, which can be reflected by its Oscar nominations and box office.

The main reason Tropic Thunder works so well is that it's stellar ensemble cast. Stars likes of Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr, Jack Black, Jay Baruchel, Steve Coogan, and Nick Nolte all turning in terrific comedic performances that they obviously had fun with.

Teacher's note: This author is obviously a fan of Tropic. I'm glad to hear this since I too am a fan. I don't think such a "biting satire" as this film would have been possible without the attachments of so many big stars. I think they were all standing in line to get on board the Tropic Thunder Train. Hats off to Jay Baruchel's character for helding his own among such big stars. Thanks for a nice post.

--mike http://www.moviesgrowenglish.com

[coco]

My favorite character in TROPIC THUNDER is Kirk Lazarus, acted by Robert Downey Jr. He is an Australian actor who changes his skin color in order to play an African American. He is really devoted into his character. At the beginning of this movie, he and Tugg Speedman are performing a scene that Tugg is going to die and Kirk is really sad about his leaving. The funniest part of Kirk’s performance is that he cries really sadly and keeps drooling. He keeps spitting on Tugg’s face which really annoys Tugg. The reason why I think this plot is really funny is that Kirk do not consider his drooling and spitting as a disgusting performance, on the contrary, he acknowledge his performance as professional and passionate.

The funniest moment in TROPIC THUNDER is when KirK and Jeff Portnoy are trying to safe Speedman, Kirk tied Jeff to the back of a buffalo and keeps spanking him while speaking Chinese. To me, Kirk’s Chinese is hilarious.

My opinion about TROPIC THUNDER is that this movie is a classical American Humor comedy which combines so many different elements. In this movie, there are a lot of super stars like Jeff Kahn, Robert Downey Jr. and Tom Cruise. All of them acts really differently from what they usually performed, they all surprised me. However, as a foreigner, I find that it is a little bit difficult for me to fully understand this movie and the jokes in it. But the trailers in the beginning really surprised me and make me laugh really hard. Besides, the music is nice and the story is really unpredictable. Accordingly, I like this movie.

[JuniE]

I think Simple Jack does make a good point about the "special-need" characterization in Hollywood. And this character actually served as a satire to make fun of the former Oscar winners in real world who once played a retarded characters, such as Sean Penn and Dustin Hoffman. (I myself find the movie I Am Sam very touching anyway)

My favorite character in this movie is Kirk, because some of his words are meaningful, like his discussion about"retarded". And he makes me laugh many times, I especially remembering the scene he said: "I know who I am! I'm the dude playing the dude disguised as another dude!" It's funny! Besides, at the end of the movie he revealed his real face, and he is not a black man! This impressed me. I think Robert Downey did a great job

The funniest moment in Tropic Thunder is when Tugg killed a panda in the forest, which is the animal he loves most. And he made a panda hat afterwards. Then he telephoned his manager, and the dialogues between them is also very very funny. I especially remembered that a dialogue as follow: "I killed one,Rick.The thing I love most in the world.""A hooker.All right,you killed a hooker.""NO, A panda.""Amanda?" It's the first scene that really makes me laugh heavily in this film.

The film tells a story of five actors featuring a film: they each has different troubles with their career and had a great self-esteem. They ruined a film directed by a fresh new filmmaker and was sent to a real forest to shot in real situation. However, their film-making quickly gets out of control as they meets a Chinese tribe. They experienced a true adventure and find their true self in the end.

As for me, I didn't quite get the humor and the satirical style of Tropic Thunder at first class. And I find the beginning part a bit shocking! However, as the plot moves on, I gradually found it really interesting and was eager to know what's going on next. And the cast is eye-catching. (I haven't recognized Tom Cruize until I saw the reviews online.) What makes this movie more watchable is those satire to directors, screenwriters and the whole Hollywood,for instance, the screenwriter said that he didn't even write the play based on real experience as he once said he was. I like this film, as it's quite special.Audiences would rethink about the current film industry while being hilarious.