Where to begin in discussing a movie like Borat? The whole thing has been talked about and publicized to the point of over-saturation, and people seem to have an opinion on it that is largely positive. The universal opinion of Borat has been "offensive yet hilarious." According to rottentomatoes.com, 96 percent of critics who have seen the film gave it a positive score (making it the highest rated film of the year). Having been a fan of the comedic mastermind behind Borat (Sacha Baron Cohen) from his set-up on the Ali G show, I knew a bit of what to expect going into this. It would be crass and tasteless at times, but poignant and hilarious at others.
First things first, Cohen is a master at improvisation and comedic timing. Every one of his unsuspecting guests has no idea what to expect, and he keeps pushing them and pushing them without cracking a smile. It's truly amazing to watch him do this and his talent is evident. He pulls out all the stops and crosses every line imaginable. There is full frontal male nudity, a huge heaping of anti-Semitism, and vulgarity that will cause the curious to be disgusted and walk out in the first 10 minutes. Once it starts, it only escalates. No one is safe from Borat; not churches, not celebrities, and certainly not the Midwest. Friends of mine have compared Borat to Tom Green, but I disagree. Whereas Tom Green was out to do disgusting things for the sake of being disgusting, Borat does what he does for a reason. This brings up 2 questions: How much "purpose" behind something causes a justification of such foul behavior? And what is the purpose of Borat's mischief?
I think Cohen creates these characters, particularly Borat, to put a mirror up in front of ourselves as privileged Americans. Are people really that naïve to think that this is what a man from Kazakhstan is like (By the way, Kazakhstan is the perfect location for this type of a stunt - a place known and yet entirely unknown)? Are Americans still this culturally intolerant? The resounding answer (from the edited footage) is "absolutely." We meet people who hate Muslims, college students who take misogyny to a whole new level, and various other characters who will make you embarrassed to be an American. I know I felt both embarrassed to be an American as well as embarrassed to be a Christian. If while laughing outloud you also don't feel sad at some level, you are missing the point.
Underneath all of the mischief is a serious and heartwarming point that definitely resonates, and the subtext throughout is sure to cause much discussion. However as a movie, it didn't work all of the way for me. The scripted parts which helped move along the story were uninteresting and slowed the pace, there were several scenes that seemed like set-ups on both sides of the coin, and some of the targets seemed misguided. For example, it seems like Cohen would appreciate what feminists are doing today, so why would he humiliate them on screen? Also, I know that Cohen is Jewish, but the ant-Semitism was just too strong for me. One scene of this had me about get up and walk out. Then again, other scenes had me laughing hysterically ("What kind of a gun do I need to defend myself against Jews?"). The last problem is we don't know what got cut and how this movie was edited. We have heard reality television get slammed for falsification of the story (I don't understand why writers are hired to construct REALITY television?) and I bet that many of the cut clips would show tolerant, reasonable individuals.
Overall, it was offensive and funny, but I doubt I'll watch it again. The commentary is poignant and the laughs are here, but I can't justify how far Cohen goes and then call it good entertainment. You can't help but feel pity for the unsuspecting interviewees in a couple scenes and how the joke is on them.
I feel that what Baron-Cohen is saying needs to be said. I just wish he found a different way to say it.
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