PRINTVox rates Borat
November 9, 2006 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Although this much-hyped film doesn’t need any help promoting itself, Borat: Cultural Learning of America Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan gives moviegoers relief from the tired comedies of Judd Apatow and Ben Stiller and leaves a stroke of genius in its wake.
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The character of Borat Sagdiyev, a Kazakhstani TV personality and journalist, is the brainchild of British comedian and creator of Da Ali G Show, Sacha Baron Cohen. On Ali G, originally shown in the U.S. on HBO and available on DVD, Cohen plays three characters – Ali G, a wannabe gangsta who wears baggy clothes and outrageous sunglasses; Borat, a bumbling, naïve foreigner who often makes off-color jokes; and Bruno, a gay fashion expert. Each character interacts with political figures and asks them hilarious and often grossly inappropriate questions.
In the film, Borat and his producer, Azamat Bagatov, fly to New York to shoot a documentary about America, the supposed greatest country in the world. Borat becomes infatuated with Pamela Anderson after seeing an episode of Baywatch and leaves on a cross-country trip to California to marry her.
Of course, that’s not really what the movie is about. Vignettes from the trip reveal a mix of interesting personalities and portray Americana in a fresh but often frightening way.
By stereotyping a citizen from a country most people couldn’t find on a map, Cohen plays with the “ignorance is bliss” cliché and turns cultural tolerance on its head. Borat is racist, sexist and anti-Semitic, yet the things he says are often met with high-fives from interviewees who don’t even bat an eyelash over the outrageous statements. Wait for the gun salesman. Jaws will undoubtedly drop, and stomachs will ache from deep belly laughs.
Worse still are the things that come out of the mouths of some of the Americans Borat interviews on his journey. Borat allows his subjects to be brutally candid. Sometimes this elicits the most demeaning remarks from the natives themselves. The rodeo veteran is just one example. Moviegoers who are easily offended should stay far away from this movie. People who aren’t won’t be disappointed.
Bordering almost too much on slapstick, the movie could benefit from a little more intelligent insight and original comedy. But in this road movie mockumentary directed by Larry Charles, the cohesion of the director’s talent and Cohen’s undeniable wit will leave audiences laughing and wanting more. It’s like Jackass — with haunting social commentary. Get there before it’s sold out.
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