Filmic reflectivity involves the exploration of the inner workings of Hollywood as a means of attracting an interest from the mass audience; something that Tropic Thunder unremittingly achieves. Not only is the script constructed from one-liners of ongoing humour and absurdity, but the cast (consisting of Ben Stiller and Jack Black) excel in constructing situations that are so illogical, we almost forget that we are watching a product of their misfortunes- creating the film Four Leaf set in Vietnam.
Inevitably, filming does not go as calculated, and once the director Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) dies, the actors are driven into disequilibrium, facing the ‘Flaming Dragon’ gang in their province of the Golden Triangle. The humour spawns from the characters diverse cultural representations which merge tightly together creating a ‘Tropic Thunder’; not a thunder of rage and darkness but one of obscene humour and absurdity which connect with us directly. What could have easily been a film of meaningless gags and torture actually resulted in a potent summer blockbuster showing significance from its opening.
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