Tropic Thunder Adds Gaming Laughs

The funniest movie of the year is set in Hawaii (doubling for Vietnam) and focuses on a group of prima donna actors who have managed to go a month over budget in just five days. Tropic Thunder isn't the type of comic setting you'd expect to find videogame humor in, but director Ben Stiller, who also co-wrote the script and stars in the movie, has added some very funny videogame scenes to this over-the-top Hollywood spoof.

Matthew McConaughey (filling in for Owen Wilson) plays a Hollywood agent who's obessed with getting his client -- Stiller's Tugg Speedman -- a TiVo. When he's in his office, whether he's trying to cut a deal with Les Grossman (a hilarious bald, hairy and fat Tom Cruise) or making sure Speedman is comfortable in the five-star resort, he's playing Wii Sports games on a plasma screen like Wii Tennis. And he gets into his virtual sport with the Wii Remote.

Even in the middle of the lush Hawaiian forest, actor Jay Baruchel (playing actor Kevin Sandusky) has a long diatribe about the PlayStation 3 and how Blu-ray disc won the format war against HD-DVD for two reasons -- videogames and porn. Sony committed to Blu-ray with its PS3 and the porn industry jumped on board the format. It's completely out of left field in the movie, but it's a hilarious bit, especially when Robert Doney Jr. (playing a black-pigmented actor Kirk Lazarus) asks him if he's talking to him.

Tropic Thunder is not a videogame movie, by any means. But the fact that even Stiller is integrating gaming into his R-rated comedies shows how mainstream games have become. The other day I saw Step Brothers and Guitar Hero was featured in that film. (Tropic Thunder is much funnier than Step Brothers, by the way.)

It's been a long time since Stiller directed a movie -- Zoolander (one of his best films) -- and Tropic Thunder shows that this comic has a long life ahead of him behind the camera, if he so chooses. He freely allows Jack Black and the rest of the cast to have plenty of laughs. And the blend of gore, crude language and outlandish circumstances makes for a politically incorrect romp. The movie will offend some, but it will make most people laugh from the fake trailers all the way through to the closing credits. You have to see Cruise dance in this movie.

So if you've seen The Dark Knight -- and most of you have judging by its box office -- check out Tropic Thunder. You won't be disappointed.