Not Coming to a Theater Near You

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Borat / Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan / USA / 2006

Is nice. I like. High five!

Ok, bad Borat impressions aside, Cohen’s film was able to execute its premise far better than I initially expected it to, simply because Cohen’s past attempts to create movies based on his Ali G character have been far less successful and I doubted that such a short sketch could sustain itself for a feature film.

I believe part of the appeal to watching Borat make almost everyone (including himself) look foolish is to pretend that we would be much wiser in such a scenario. Such an assumption is rather flawed and I think to truly appreciate Cohen’s brand of comedy one has to realize our reactions would probably be much the same as those of his “victims,” especially when we consider that much of the humour is the result of Cohen taking advantage of Americans being overly polite and courteous (which is something they don’t really get enough credit for) to a foreign visitor. Unfortunately, it’s an ignorance of the world outside our borders and it’s assortment of cultures that truly gets us in trouble. Thus, it’s not just bigotry, but isolationism that Cohen truly finds appalling and it’s the improbably candid moments of unprovoked and unguarded ignorance and prejudice, masked as wisdom and sound advice that provide the film with its most hilarious and disturbing moments of humour.

However, I find these types of comedic schemes are always hard to completely embrace. Canadian television often features shows of comedians conducting interviews with everyday Americans in which the dialogue consists of duping some supposedly well-informed American into believing the most ludicrous facts about Canada (we just received electricity, we finally allow women to vote, we elected Wayne Gretzky to be our king, etc.) and essentially taking away a portion of their dignity. I have friends who think this might be the greatest form of comedy ever, since some of the victims have been Ivy League professors and politicians (surprise, surprise, George W. Bush was once duped) and it’s general practice in Canada to assume we are much more sophisticated than any American. I agree that such supposedly intelligent people should probably know a little more about their neighboring countries, but I often like to point out that almost everyone I know (and I include myself among them) is just as guilty as these supposedly ignorant Americans of not knowing very much about foreign cultures. I’m certain a Mexican comedian could walk into Canada and convince a few of our CEOs, professors, doctors, and politicians that Mexico just passed a law allowing men to marry their dogs and the average Mexican eats 3000 lbs of burritos a year. Hence, I think it’s best to consider laughing at ourselves while laughing at how uninformed everyone else may be, especially since I don’t know a heck of a lot about countries such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, but I’m still willing to laugh at the hostility that exists between them.

Aside from all of that seriousness, it’s nice to see Luenell gets some more high profile work since her work in The Rock.

Leo’s thoughts and review | Rumsey’s thoughts |

by Chiranjit Goswami | Source: 20th Century Fox 35mm Print
01 Dec 2006 2:14 PM | Comments (5)

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Comments / 5 total / Submit Comment

1. leo / 1 December 2006 / 12:44 PM / URL

   One of the points I somehow failed to make in my review — a point that, given the film’s success and reception, and the rather inevitable backlash it has faced, I dearly wish I had made — is that, like nearly all “edgy” comedy these days, Borat trades in a kind of double-articulation comedy wherein jokes are made at the simultaneous expense of stereotypes and the stereotypers (-typists?). That’s to say that Baron Cohen, like Jon Stewart, Dave Chappelle, and Peter Griffin, likes to have his cake and eat it, too: we get to laugh at stereotypes (those of chocolate-faces and Eurasians alike) while we are purportedly laughing at the ignorance and backward-thinking that is at the root of them. Jit, I think you and I discussed this same kind of thing briefly in terms of Wedding Crashersother comedy that has a grand old time with (albeit, light) misogyny and homophobia, while paying some very perfunctory lip-service to the idea of being a tad more sensitive.

   This is an interesting tack that basically licenses a guilt-free (and much cheaper) laugh at the expense of familiar comedy fodder, with the added bonus of the self-satisfaction of one who is so sophisticated that he can recognize racism and still have a good chuckle at it. As such, it is almost always doomed to failure, because such things inevitably appeal to people (naughty little boys, e.g.) who don’t actually know any better. But upon first seeing Borat, self-hating liberal that I am, I took a great deal of it to heart and imagined it might be the first comedy — with its moments of extreme displeasure and visceral shock — to actually strike this balance successfully.

   But now, I’m not so sure. I still find it a hilariously funny film — which in some ways is all that matters, probably — but I can’t attribute the film’s overwhelming success to a widespread cultural and political savvy, a general introspection, or a national acknowledgement of American folly (the war notwithstanding).

   In this way, if none other, though I do believe Baron Cohen intends something quite subtle with his (very unsubtle) comedy, I think he’s failed. For me, this calls into question the viability of ever being able to use shock as a tool of political provocation again. One can’t help but think that, released today, Pasolini’s Salò the gross-out comedy hit of the year, star Jeremy Piven and Horatio Sanz as a couple of fun-loving libertines, and bear either Broken Lizard’s or National Lampoon’s logo.

   I guess we’ve still got the impending Bruno on which to pin our hopes.

2. Chiranjit / 1 December 2006 / 1:55 PM / URL

   I’m hoping very few Hollywood execs visit our site, because I have a terrible feeling Horatio Sanz’s agent’s phone would be ringing non-stop after your suggestion, and Sanz actually getting more employment in comedy films is a horror no one should have to endure.

   Speaking of Bruno, I actually think the other characters on Cohen’s show are more successful than Borat. Ali G is usually the focus of the comedy within the interviews he conducts, simply because he’s so absurd in relation to the people he interviews and the subjects of the interview are usually just being respectful.

   I have a friend who swears that Bruno is the apex of comedy on the show and in some ways I’m starting to agree with his assessment. Bruno is probably the character that Cohen is able to be most caustic with, since he constantly entices such disturbing and misguided comments from those he interviews. Granted making people within the fashion industry sound shallow isn’t exactly tough, but Bruno never elicits the type of polite reaction that his other characters continually encounter. Instead we are privy to proud boasting and exaggerated claims from people who don’t seem to believe a filter is required for their depraved musings about society and their “art.” I always find the segment with Bruno to be far more exasperating and disturbing than any other portions of Cohen’s comedy show.

   In some ways, Borat is the middle-ground between the two characters and thus his segments don’t always provide the same degree of hilarity or insight due to the compromise in form and tactics. It does provide for some brilliantly awkward humor, but it’s not as funny when we realize his “victims” are often just attempting not to offend their guest.

3. Teddy / 4 December 2006 / 8:01 AM / URL

   Dude, I see Sanz perform sometimes at NYC’s Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theater, and, given an opportunity to roam free, he’s quite funny.

   Um, Borat rules, but it needs way less interpretation than it has recieved.

4. Chiranjit / 4 December 2006 / 8:26 AM / URL

   I’ll take your word for it, Teddy. He’s probably really funny in the right situation, but Sanz used to drive me bonkers on SNL since he couldn’t hold it together for any of the sketches he was in. I was convinced that he was stoned during most of the shows he appeared on. Having said that, I still think Jingleheimer Junction is insanely funny.

5. leo / 4 December 2006 / 9:20 AM / URL

   Um, Borat rules, but it needs way less interpretation than it has recieved.

   I don’t know — I think it needs way better criticism than it has received.

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