Borat (2006)

[Scott]

BORAT (2006) - If you have never seen Sacha Baron Cohen play the character Borat then you you should. Borat comes to America and after seeing Pamela Anderson on TV's Baywatch in a New York Hotel he decides he must go to California to marry her. He travels cross country in an old ice cream truck and runs into a whole bunch of people who are not sure how to handle Borats ignorant misunderstandings and differences. You'll get your moneys worth for sure. Some of the jokes could offend just about every group involved. The movie really reveals the thinking of the many even still today.  Cohen uses Jewish gags through much of the film like Woody Allen only different. Because of his approach to making this film many people are mad at him because he caught them off guard with his character Borat. If your looking for a good laugh this film has it.

(9 out of 10 Stars) Original Comedy

Here are some of the crazy scenes that will have you laughing.

• Home Life in Kazakhstan
• Brief visit to New York
• Feminist Organization
• Learning Etiquette
• Staying at the Bed & Breakfast
• Brawl and Running Through Hotel
• Rodeo
• RV Traveling
• Evangelical Event

[Yaddo 42]

There was an article locally about how he duped the red-headed etiquette woman, since she was from Birmingham. It was the usual, "he mislead us and we took it on good faith he was legit....." stuff from the woman.

And yet I have little desire to see this, I hate ambush-style humor and anything that is based on an over-the-top performer who never breaks character interacting with real people. Although I've read that some bits like the Pam Anderson chase are staged. It's humor usually born out of the other person being ill at ease and feeling awkward. And that gets old to me really quick. Andy Kaufman, the "correspondents" on The Daily Show, etc. Even as a kid, one of my best friends could do a perfect imitation of Handyman from In Living Color. I mean spot on, other folks would be rolling laughing at it, and after about 10 seconds it just ceased to be funny to me. It didn't offended me, I knew everything he was going to do and that he wouldn't stop, and that was the whole joke. I call it "the humor of discomfort", if it has a better name someone please enlighten me. There are other things that I include in this category, but this style is the "worst" offender to me.

I wasn't a fan of Cohen's Ali G either for most of the same reasons, plus when they would get caught or exposed they would quickly leave, like when he interviewed a CIA official.

[Mr_Vindictive]

I was a fan of Cohen's Ali G Show from the beginning.  I stumbled upon it on HBO one night, and I was hooked. 

My wife wanted to go see Borat for her birthday on Sunday, and I had no objections.  It was much funnier than the TV show, in my opinion.  There is a scene with Borat and his producer Azamat, both naked in a hotel...fighting and wrestling and then chasing each other through the hotel.  I could hardly breathe during the five minutes that scene took place.  It caught me off guard.

The best thing about the film is Cohen's ability to make people show their true side.  Not everyone in the film comes off as being an a***ole or a racist, but quite a few do.  There are college kids who tell Borat the the Jews and Blacks have the upper hand in society and that we need to bring back slavery.  There is a rodeo guy who tells Borat that he looks like a terrorist and that we should hang homosexuals in public. 

It's really a film worth seeing being as it's so different from anything else at the theaters.  It's a strong, funny comedy and it accomplishes much much much much more than any comedy in years.

[Scott]

Some of the scenes are staged like the fighting in the hotel room, the bear scaring the children, and the scene with Pamela Anderson, but the rest of the film captures peoples real prejudice. You can also see why the country of Kazakistan is upset as Borat is more like the villiage idiot than a reporter, but it's all funny.

http://www.borat.tv/

[Ash]

If any of you haven't seen it, you'll love Martha Stewart showing Borat how to make a bed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Click where it says, "Featured Videos and WATCH CLIP".
It should bring up a new box and in that box should be many more mini-boxes of videos.
Scroll all the way down and it will be the 4th mini-box from the last.

Here It Is

Matter of fact, if you want a smile on your face, watch most of the videos there especially the Photo Booth videos.
Funny stuff!

[Ed, Ego and Superego]

You know I really have no time for this guy.  It reminds me of those "Morning Zoo" radio show where they call people and play pranks    I hate stuff like that.  I KNOW people are gullable I don't need to see some dude tricking folks for mamusement value.  Let alone pay for it. 

On a different note, my aunt ran a cafeteria at Cambride University.  Apparently, Sascha Cohen use dto study there.
-Ed

[Yaddo 42]

Thanks for your explanation why you like him, Skaboi. I don't agree, but I like to hear why people find something funny or not.

But where are these people who hide their ugly true side you speak of? Maybe it says something of the circles I move in (small as they are), the people I work with, and even some of my extended family. I could actually do with hearing less of these people's racist, bigoted, and ignorant views and beliefs. Not because I think they should kepp it hush hush, but because I hear so many idiots IRL who have these opinions and beliefs. I'm not Mr. PC, but I hate having had to explain to people that, "No, the expression 'Jew someone down' is not a compliment."

Ed, I see what you mean about the Morning Zoo camparison, there's a morning team I've heard who get people to call friends and relatives and allow them to only say one phrase over and over, and try to keep the victim on the phone for a set amount of time or say something in particular within a set time. Although a lot are probably planned out ahead of time by the caller and victim, it seems odd to me to want to yank the chain of people you love and care for this way on the air to win prizes. I'm a greedy bastard, but I still have some standards.

[odinn7]

Ed, I see what you mean about the Morning Zoo camparison, there's a morning team I've heard who get people to call friends and relatives and allow them to only say one phrase over and over, and try to keep the victim on the phone for a set amount of time or say something in particular within a set time. Although a lot are probably planned out ahead of time by the caller and victim, it seems odd to me to want to yank the chain of people you love and care for this way on the air to win prizes. I'm a greedy bastard, but I still have some standards.

I've heard worse than that. There is an afternoon DJ on the local station here who often has contests that I can't picture anyone being willing to do. The worst one is where he has someone call a loved one and confess something real that they had done that the loved one doesn't know about. I heard one lady that called in and she confessed to her husband (who was at work at the time) that a few years earlier, she had cheated on him with his brother. She did this for what? Oh yes, club tickets to see some local band...maybe a $20 value.
It really made me sick.

[Flangepart]

Yep....not gonna see it.

Its a case of feeding on the imperfections of people. Now, all comics do that, but usually, in principle, not specific. I even wonder how many comics say their wife did something , and they just heavily modified a less funny event.
The mean spiritedness of some comics, just puts me off. Hey, my school days are over....and i don't want to revisit them.

I understand Cohen got slugged awhile back, in NY. Surprised its not more often, not that people have a chance to know what he's up to.

ANDREW: Bless you for spellcheck! I am now worthy, i am not worthy...

[Yaddo 42]

I'm not surprised there's worse out there, odinn7, it was just the first example that came to mind, and it was, I think, from one of the few wacky morning zoo crews I kinda like, Beener and Ken. I still maintain that many of the callers are working their stories out ahead of time, BSing for prizes and attention, like Jerry Springer guests. We didn't get syndicated guys like Stern or Opie and Anthony here when they were on regular radio, but I heard Stern elsewhere, and used to read about O&A's exploits.

Flangepart, I figure many or most amp up real stories to get better material for their acts, people do it in "real life" when they retell stories of what happened to them, sometimes without realizing it.

One thing I like about comedian Ron White is he will go off on a tangent telling a wild story from something else he has already done, get the audience laughing, then throw in a "No, I didn't." or "I'm lying, there's no ranch." as a way of saying, "I can't believe you fell for that."

[Scott]

Well......if you mean that we don't find talents like George Burns, Abbott & Costello, and Jack Benny anymore then we have to look more at the audience to figure this out. The audience always wants to go the the extreme with all things and comedy is another example. So we get all types of stuff like Reality TV, Pro Wrestling with high risk spots, game shows like Fear Factor, and movies that have to explosions everying 5 minutes.

Simple is still funny, but it's not making the money. Audiences failure and media's williness to show it. They go hand in hand.

Back to BORAT........he tricks people into showing thier true side. Something we has humans need to face and talk about.

And if we don't like it then "BORAT get execute".

[Yaddo 42]

Actually what I meant was that comedians aren't journalists, tied to the "facts" of what ever may have inspired their material. Even those legends you mentioned were playing up stage personas they developed. Hope as the big talking little coward; Benny as the cheap, vain, failed lothario forever saying he's 39; A&C as the snappish, short-tempered jerk and the confused, naive, but sweet man-child, Burns as Gracie's bemused straight man and later the guy who outlived more talented performers by chasing women, drinking, and smoking.

To me at least, "It's funny because it's true"should be changed to "It's funny because we can relate, or sometimes it shocks us." But that isn't as catchy..

Of course extremes have always entertained audiences: dirty jokes, bodily function jokes, burlesque, drinking stories, sex stories, gross-out stories, etc.

Audiences are responding to Borat, but the success of the character limits his ability repeat or develop it. Same with Ali G, and the same with Otto when they make that film. He does get people to drop their guard or show the ugly side of themselves, I just see enough of that side from people in real life as it is, so the humor appeal isn't there for me. And like I said the "ambush" aspect bothers me, but then Candid Camera reruns as a kid made me want to beat the hell out of Alan Funt and get that smug grin off his face.