'Borat' 4 Scoops

Sacha Baron Cohen is a comic genius. As Borat Sagdiyev, a TV journalist from Kazakhstan who is the least politically correct character imaginable, Baron Cohen spits out the most outrageous racist and sexist statements he can think of. Yet it’s the reaction of most of his unknowing victims that proves to be the most interesting aspect of Borat. The defiantly unapologetic and laugh out loud funny Borat is not for the easily offended or for those who don’t get Sacha Baron Cohen’s satirical humor. If even one scene from the trailer or TV commercials has upset you, do not go see Borat. Nothing is off-limits – not feminists, Jewish people, Pentecostals, homosexuals, or politicians. If there’s a way to stir the pot and use this shocking mockumentary to make us examine our values, Borat goes for it.

Once in America, Borat proceeds to skewer Western values at every turn. From inquiring of a gun store owner which gun to buy to kill Jews, to carrying on a conversation with the head of a rodeo about killing all homosexuals and then whipping up that rodeo crowd by praising America’s “war of terror,” Borat’s just as offensive as the genuinely shocking responses he elicits.

Baron Cohen and director Larry Charles don’t cheat when it comes to laying it all on the line. Borat is placed in the most volatile situations possible, sometimes barely escaping being hauled off to jail and even once being wrestled to the ground by the police. Yet not once over the course of the film does Sacha Baron Cohen break character. Like him or loathe him, Baron Cohen delivers an absolutely amazing performance and one audiences won’t forget. It is without a doubt one of the best performances by an actor in 2006, maybe even of the decade.

Baron Cohen’s brilliant film skewers anti-Semitism and racism while delivering some of the biggest laughs of the year. Borat leaves you chuckling while at the same time thinking about the root causes of prejudice and bigotry, and for that reason Borat’s a must-see.

A little thing mainly unknown abour Baron Choen: He wrote “A Case of Mistaking Identities – the Jewish Black Alliance” as his thesis. The piece examined the nature of cooperation between the African-American and Jewish communities and suggested ways to improve relations in the current day. Baron Cohen's professor described it as a major work of importance on the civil rights movement and is suggested reading for history students in Cambridge.