Borat!: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Directed by Larry Charles
Written by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Peter Baynham, Dan Mazer
Rated R: for pervasive strong crude and sexual content including graphic nudity, and language
Legendary comedian George Carlin was once quoted: “I think it's the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately.” I couldn’t agree more. Comedians should always be trying to take the next step forward. Reinvention of what we find funny as a culture may be the most difficult thing to achieve in the movies. It’s a toss-up between that or actually scaring an audience these days. But in the rare occurrence of seeing something truly original and hilarious, one must always tip their hat and proclaim said comedian a genius.
“Borat!: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” (a ridiculously long, but all too appropriate, title that is only one word short of being the longest titled film of all time behind Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove”) is a milestone in the annals of film comedy. Sacha Baron Cohen (who created and stars as Borat) has taken what we consider funny, offensive, repulsive, sacred, ridiculous, and embarrassing about our culture, thrown it in a blender, flipped the on switch and spewed out a completely original comedy the likes America has never seen.
I’m reminded of the recent Christopher Nolan film “The Prestige,” when Christian Bale’s character says a rather poignant piece of dialogue: “A real magician tries to invent something new, that other magicians are gonna scratch their heads over.” The relevancy of this statement struck a chord with me when I saw that wonderful film a few weeks ago, but after seeing “Borat!” I couldn’t help but be astounded by the way it describes the work of a true comedian. Cohen has successfully invented something new: a new genre, satire, fake documentary and pure comedic entertainment all rolled up into one side-splitting, 84-minute ride.
The title character Borat was born from the terrific “Da Ali G Show.” The show lasted two seasons on HBO and was brilliantly hilarious in its own right. In the show, Cohen acts out his three alter egos: Ali G (a wannabe gangster rapper from London who thinks he’s black), Bruno (an overtly gay Austrian fashion show host), and of course Borat (a bumbling and naive Kazakhstani reporter who documents American way of life for the country’s benefit). The show worked extremely well because of Cohen’s methodical dedication to remaining in character, and that he interviewed famous, well-respected people from America who were under the impression that his characters were genuine.
The film “Borat!” follows the same style of the show. Borat is dispatched by the government to make a documentary about America to help his country. In all the interviews that Borat conducts in the show, he always manages to get people to admit, consciously or not, their prejudices and bigotry towards things in American culture. The film is no different, except that Cohen and director Larry Charles (who has directed numerous episodes of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” along with being a writer on “Seinfeld” and “Entourage”) have crafted a narrative that fits perfectly with the character. They could’ve simply made an episodic film that was nothing more than a string of random interviews much like the show, but instead give Borat more for his film.
The film opens with fake Kazakhstani television production credits, and then a terrific prologue in which Borat shows us his village, its people and his one-room house (complete with VCR, cassette player and a live bull). The opening lines from “Borat” immediately garner huge laughs: “Jagshemash! My name Borat. I like you. I like sex. Is nice!” Borat’s American odyssey begins, and we see him working with his producer Azamat (actor Ken Davitian) to make their documentary. The film’s true genius lies in trying to decipher what is real and what is staged. All of the interviews appear to be real, in which the unsuspecting interviewees (everyone from a fine dining teacher to a rodeo director) patiently deal with Borat’s cultural differences and misunderstandings (to which one of the fine dining women says “I think he can be Americanized in no time”)
Every scene in “Borat” is hilarious. There’s never a point in the film where Cohen’s shtick wears thin. Instead, the film gets more ridiculous and funny. Once in New York, Borat accidentally releases a rooster on a subway, angers a comedy coach, really angers a group of feminists, and chases people around the city simply trying to introduce himself (in a sequence that parodies “Midnight Cowboy” complete with Harry Nilsson singing “Everybody’s Talking”). Then Borat discovers the show “Baywatch” and is changed forever. He instantly falls in love with Pamela Anderson and vows to marry her (claiming that she has golden blonde hair, white teeth, and the ass of a seven year old). The documentary becomes a road adventure to meet Pamela Anderson in California.
The intelligence of the material is on display throughout the film. We are shown people who proudly display their bigotry on their sleeve, and reveal things to the camera that most wouldn’t tell their mothers. Most of this is because Cohen plays his character so perfectly that the people think this is for real. The film appears to be racist in nature, but Cohen trusts in his audience to know that this is pure satire, especially when you consider that he is in fact Jewish (most of the humor in the film is anti-Semitic). This is smart and vulgar humor designed to show us real prejudices exist, much like Mel Brooks did with “The Producers” and “Blazing Saddles” and Trey Parker and Matt Stone did with their “South Park” movie and “Team America: World Police.”
“Borat” is going to change film comedy as we know it. It made more than $26 million in its first weekend playing in a mere 837 theaters nationwide (most big films play on 2,000 plus screens), making its per screen average an unbelievable $31,500. The film will be released in more theaters this week, and it may become one of the biggest hits of the year. It’s certainly one of the best films of the year, and the best comedy to come along in at least a decade.
Many people have discussed how much of the film is real and how much is staged. Some scenes are clearly fake (like the Pamela Anderson confrontation near the end, she’s definitely in on the gag) but totally necessary. The film had to have some kind of plot to keep things interesting. Otherwise this would have been another failed movie like 2002’s straight to video mishap “Ali G’s Indahouse.” The gross humor in the film is also brilliant because it actually is a result of the narrative. When Borat and Azamat wrestle each other in the nude (perhaps the funniest scene I have ever witnessed on film), it isn’t just a throwaway, disgusting gag with no meaning to the story. Instead it is the point in which Borat reveals his love—and his motivations for wanting to go to California—for Pamela Anderson to his producer. Because of the fight, the story also takes on a sort of underdog quality to see if Borat will make it to his dream woman.
Cohen himself is a bit of an enigma. He rarely does interviews or public appearances out of character. He truly lives his craft. It is truly amazing how he manages to stay in character throughout the film without so much as breaking a smile. Few actors could do what Cohen does, if any at all. He is a gifted and intelligent comedic actor. “Borat” is the most fun I’ve had at the theater in quite some time.
HDFEST grading scale
-Borat!: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan-
Story A-
Acting A
Visuals B
(because the film mimics perfectly the look of a cheap 3rd world country television production)
Originality A+
Enjoyability A+
Overall Grade A
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