Tropic Thunder Movie Trailers and Reviews

Tropic Thunder (2008)

Starring: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Nick Nolte, Steve Coogan, Jay Baruchel

Director: Ben Stiller

Release Date: August 13th, 2008
Release Date: 19th September, 2008

Synopsis: A film crew is in Southeast Asia filming a Vietnam-war memoir. It’s early in the shooting, but they’re already behind schedule and over budget. On the day an accident befalls the novice director, the cast and crew are attacked by a gang of poppy-growing local drug dealers, except the cast and crew don’t realize these aren’t actors who are stocking them. The thugs kidnap Tugg Speedman, an actor whose star seems on the decline, and it’s up to the rest of the ragtag team to band together long enough to attempt his rescue. But will Tugg want to leave?

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Tropic Thunder Movie Trailer

About the Movie

Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film directed and produced by Ben Stiller. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black, and Robert Downey, Jr. as a group of prima donna actors making a Vietnam War film. When their frustrated writer and director decide to drop them in the middle of a jungle, the actors are forced to portray their roles without the comforts of a film set. Written by Stiller, Justin Theroux, and Etan Cohen, the film was produced by DreamWorks and Red Hour Films and distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Stiller’s idea for the film originated while playing a small part in Empire of the Sun, and he later enlisted Theroux and Cohen’s help to complete the script. After the film was greenlit in 2006, filming took place in 2007 on the Hawaiian island of Kauai over thirteen weeks and was later deemed the largest film production in the island’s history. Tropic Thunder had an extensive marketing promotion, including faux websites for the main characters and their fictional films, airing a fictional television special, and selling the energy drink advertised in the film, “Booty Sweat”. Prior to the film’s release, it was met with criticism from disability advocacy groups for its portrayal of mental retardation.

Tropic Thunder’s soundtrack and score debuted on August 5, 2008, before the film’s theatrical release. It received generally favorable reviews with critics approving of the film’s characters, story, and faux trailers while criticizing its offensive content. In its North American opening weekend, the film earned US$26 million and retained the number one position for the first three weekends of release. The film and its cast were nominated for several awards by various groups including the Screen Actors Guild, Broadcast Film Critics Association, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Tropic Thunder grossed $180 million in theaters before its release on home video on November 18, 2008.