'Tropic Thunder' (R)(out of four)

"Tropic Thunder" is funny, offensive, mind-blowing, ridiculous, cynical, insane and memorable all at the same time. It's easily one of the best movies to see this summer.

But be forewarned: If you can't take 90 minutes of a movie that takes swipes at the mentally disabled, drug addicts, amputees, gay men, over bloated Hollywood actors (especially ones who undergo pigmentation in order to get the leading African-American role in a war movie), Asian drug lords, Sean Penn or the Academy Awards, then you probably should stay away from "Tropic Thunder."

Already there are folks lining up to protest one continuing offensive storyline in "Thunder," in which Ben Stiller's character is still living down a bad choice of movie roles for "Simple Jack." In it, Stiller, as Tug Speedman, portrays a mentally disabled man. He's chided by another actor for playing Jack as "full retard" rather than Dustin Hoffman's in "Rain Man" or Tom Hanks in "Forrest Gump." Slow, yes. Retarded, maybe," the actor tells Speedman about Hanks' movie portrayal. Dozens of people from organizations such as the Special Olympics and the American Association of People with Disabilities say they will continue to protest the spoof because of its "open ridicule of the intellectually disabled."

While I'm not one to defend blatant attacks on the disabled, it must be noted that the jabs do fit within context of the rest of the over-the-top film. After all, Jack Black stars in a fake movie trailer called "The Fatties," or one of the characters ends up crushing on openly gay NSYNC singer Lance Bass. The bottom line is that "Tropic Thunder" is an equal opportunity offender film.

What "Tropic Thunder" delights in poking fun at really are the trappings of stardom in an era where every move by celebrities such as Britney Spears causes a breaking news flash.

"Tropic Thunder's" main plot is about a group of grandstanding actors who are tapped to make the most expensive war movie ever, but end up becoming real life soldiers after a series of mishaps. It opens with a bang with some hilarious fake trailers for each star's next alleged movie. Stiller, who directed and also co-wrote the screenplay, is a fading action star who, in the same vein as "Die Hard" and "Rambo," has made one too many modern hero films. If you believe the trailer, the sixth installment of "Scorcher" will be in theaters any day.

Robert Downey Jr. is Australian thespian Kirk Lazarus, a definite takeoff of megalomaniac Russell Crowe, whose trailer is a takeoff on "Brokeback Mountain," and Black is Jeff Portnoy, the drug-addicted star of a series of flatulence-filled movies reminiscent of Eddie Murphy's "The Klumps."

After the trailers roll and the "real" movie begins, the supersized egos are going head to head on the set of a new "Platoon"-esque picture called "Tropic Thunder," based on a book by Sgt. Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte).

The film is already over budget after only five days of shooting. After the whacked-out, profanity-laden head of the movie studio calls a satellite meeting with the cast and crew and threatens to shut the picture down, the film's director (Steve Coogan) decides to shoot the movie "guerilla style," putting the prima donnas in their place and sending them out into the real Vietnam jungle. When they become real-life sitting ducks for a group of drug warlords called the Flaming Dragons, only the pea-brained actors believe they are still shooting a movie.

The film also stars Matthew McConaughey as a "Jerry Maguire" type talent agent, Tom Cruise in a surprise turn that definitely shows the actor's appetite for over-the-top roles, plus Jay Baruchel and Brandon T. Jackson as the other two movie actors who are the yins to Downey's and Stiller's yangs, round out the cast. Meanwhile, Stiller gives his real-life wife, Christine Taylor, a cameo in his "Simple Jack" movie.

Reportedly nine years in the making, the battle cries of "ban the movie, ban the word" from those offended by the film's "retarded" humor may draw more people into the theater than keep them away, which may not be a bad thing. Moviegoers will soon realize there isn't an ounce of anything that should be taken seriously in "Tropic Thunder," unless you're a Hollywood studio executive planning to make the next big budget war film.