Photo by: 20th Century Fox
It hit the number one box office spot. It has been selling out theaters nationwide and bringing larges audiences out of fandom and sheer curiosity.
Yet, it has been cut from select theaters and could possibly be one of the most bigoted movies of the decade. Or is it?
Meet Borat Sagdiyev.
He’s the tall, black-mustached and fictional character from Kazakhstan, made famous by British actor Sacha Cohen. Cohen is most notably known for his role as Ali G on the hit HBO comedy “Da Ali G Show.”
In “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” Borat decides to film a documentary about his visit to America.
In America, he wishes to find hidden cultural insights and new changes for his country.
The story takes a sharp turn, though, when Borat decides his trip to New York is less fruitful than expected.
Instead, he discovers his new love, Pamela Anderson, and journeys to the far beaches of California to find her. The premise from there on is to exploit America’s culture en route to California.
Along for the ride is Borat’s close friend Azamat Bagatov, played by Ken Davitian. His character provides a bit of seriousness to better emphasize Borat’s jokes during the trip.
From a production standpoint, the idea of such a trip is almost oversimplified, yet effective for a comedy.
Nevertheless, the screen and sound quality during the trip constantly vary like a true documentary, but not a true comedy.
Certain scenes look staged while others seem to be unscripted and filmed with a handheld camcorder.
Regardless, the production of the film doesn’t seem to be what is turning heads across the globe.
After leaving the theater, many audience members admitted that the film was blatantly prejudiced against all types of people and, more importantly, the nation of Kazakhstan. One scene at a Jewish bed and breakfast involves Borat throwing dollar bills at cockroaches.
He claims that the roaches are the Jewish owners of the house, transformed and ready to attack. The film clearly cuts the minimum level for a standard R-rating. The bigoted jokes are followed by public nudity and cruelty to animals.
Even though these scenes tend to dominate the film, audience members will find some comedic scenes that are composed of traditional slapstick humor.
These scenes tend to water down some of the rather over-the-top jokes, but still lead into other jokes that seem to make some audience members wonder what Cohen could possibly be thinking.
Rather than debate the issue of freedom of speech and extremity of jokes, it’s better to ask questions about the film and allow audiences to decide on the fim’s merits.
After leaving theaters, many of these questions came to mind. Is the film actually bigotry or merely exploiting a prejudices in American society?
Borat tends to follow a path across the states where many citizens he speaks with make racial and sexual slurs.
Isn’t it ignorant to judge all of America based on these select few? Furthermore, does the film need to use extreme humor to make extreme social conflicts a personal issue?
Based on sheer box office numbers, audiences members seem to be enjoying the film, but it’s hard to say what the real intent of the film is. One thing is for certain, though: the nation of Kazahkstan is directly stereotyped through the Cohen’s character.
Even though Cohen may have friendly intentions and has confirmed his devote Jewish faith to the media, Kazakstan doesn’t seem to be laughing at the film.
Audiences will have to decide the true nature of the film and whether or not it is offensive.
Until then, critics such as me can only give thumbs up for some of the scenes, yet raised eyebrows at others.
The film seems to be natured a comedic skit intended for enjoyment, but who is supposed to draw the line between over-the-top comedy and pure insult?
