Cynosure

Tropic Thunder. 3/5.

Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr. lead an ensemble cast in an adult comedy about a group of self-absorbed actors who set out to make the ultimate action movie, set during the Vietnam War, but end up deep over their heads and dealing with the real thing. Interesting premise (albeit not an original one) for a adult comedy movie, having lots of laugh-out-loud potential, but mostly poorly executed, here. (Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short did this sort of thing much better in Three Amigos.) I found myself merely chuckling over a few scenes, throughout the movie. The only time I laughed out loud was the scene with... Spoiler: the little Asian child gripping onto Stiller's back, repeatedly stabbing Stiller in the shoulder with a paring knife (or something like that) as Stiller was desparately trying to get away, across the bridge; and then Stiller casting off the little child with a throw so mighty, it somersaulted the child over the bridge, into the river below. That scene was like something out of a Monty Python movie.