Borat *** 3/4

Also reviewed by: Andrew

Sasha Baron Cohen's film Borat (full title, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan) had the benefit -- and misfortune -- of being the film with the biggest buzz in recent months. Commercials showed some of the funniest bits over and over again. Word of mouth pegged this as one of the funniest films ever. So could any movie live up to the hype?

Unfortunately, not quite. Had I gone in expecting merely a funny film based around one of Cohen's characters (and my favorite) from Da Ali G Show, I would have loved this movie. Instead, I went in expecting a non-stop laugh riot that would rank among the best comedies ever. And so, while I did laugh a lot, I didn't laugh quite as much as I thought I would and I came away a little disappointed. I was hoping for a 5-star film; instead, I'm rating this just a hair under 4 stars.

Nevertheless, this is still a hilarious film. The bit where Borat takes lessons from a comedy coach is funny; it just got overplayed in commercials. And some of the humor is uncomfortable, as real people reveal some startlingly disturbing racism and sexism. And there's one extended sequence that will have you laughing and squirming in disgust all at the same time. And damn if Pamela Anderson isn't actually convincing in her role.

As Borat, the hapless Kazakh (Kazakhstani?) journalist, Cohen commits fully to the character, whether showing off the traditional "Running of the Jew" festival in his hometown or bringing a bag of shit to the dinner table. And Borat allows Cohen to show his range as an actor, as Borat has almost nothing in common with his other Ali G characters or even the snooty French racecar driver he played in Talledega Nights.

You're able to laugh at most of Cohen's victims in this movie, the real people who didn't know he was just an actor. And the few exceptions turn out okay; you feel sorry for the owners of the antiques shop where Borat breaks hundreds of dollars of merchandise -- they really did nothing to deserve such treatment besides selling kitschy stuff -- but you get the feeling they were compensated for the lost goods offscreen (and articles about the film back that up). Likewise, you're afraid of how the anti-Semitic Borat will treat the kindly old Jewish couple in whose bed & breakfast he stays, but they aren't treated badly at all. However, I'd like to know how Cohen and crew got out of the rodeo alive after butchering the national anthem.

Borat is good for a lot of laughs. Just be prepared to be uncomfortable at times (and for about 10 minutes straight at one point). The film does expose a side of America, especially the South, that isn't particularly palatable. But you'll be struck by how patient most people try to be with Borat. And there are still enough hilarious bits -- comfortable and not -- to make this film worth seeing. Just don't raise your expectations to stratospheric heights beforehand.

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for blah blah blah ***

Also reviewed by: Dipu

I've seen Da Ali G Show, and I've heard bits and pieces about the movie (mostly about the people who are filing lawsuits against its makers). So, I thought I had the movie figured out. It still managed to surprise me, make me writhe uncomfortably in my seat, and laugh my head off.

In reviews of this movie, the term "fearless" comes up a lot. And it's true. As he poses as a Kazach journalist touring the US, Sascha Baron Cohen fearlessly, relentlessly presses people way past the point of social politeness. I couldn't possibly stand to do what he does, which is half the fun of watching him do it. The way Americans respond to him reveals two things: Lots of people in the US are really polite, and lots of people in the US are still racist, sexist, and homophobic. Not a surprise, but it's good to expose the truth using humor.

The following quote from a review in the Minneapolis Star Tribune sums it up nicely: "Conceptually brilliant and fearlessly executed, it rewrites the rules of screen comedy, presenting something never before seen on film: a gene-splice of Andy Kaufman's high-wire character humor and caught-on-the-street pranks from Punk'd."