Outstanding!

Rating: 10/10 (15 December 2006)

I think it's a lot of fun that this movie either seems to get a 10 or a 1. I can totally understand it. You either get it or you don't. If you take it seriously, you will be offended. However, if you are willing to watch the movie realizing that it is exposing people for who they REALLY are (sometimes positive, sometimes not so much), you will probably enjoy it. Yes, a lot of the characters made "fools" of themselves. Some of them I felt a real disgust towards, and to be honest, people with opinions like that deserve what they get. But most of them were sympathetic as well, and I felt that "Borat" (not a REAL guy, by the way) treated most of them very nicely.
By the way, here are comments from the sweet Jewish couple that owned the Bed and Breakfast.
"Mariam and Joseph Behar, the proprietors of the kosher bed-and-breakfast, tell Salon that they rented out three rooms to what they thought was a Kazakh documentarian and his film crew. The location had been scouted and photographed, with the Behars' knowledge, prior to the taping. Speaking on the telephone, Joseph, with Mariam chatting in the background, says they saw the film and thought it "was not anti-Semitic at all. It was outstanding. I think (Sacha Baron Cohen) is a genius."
So . . .maybe sometimes the rest of us are so ready to jump on the "P.C." bandwagon and PROVE we're not racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. that we forget to just relax. Sacha Baron Cohen makes fun of himself more than anyone else, and only people with hate in their hearts come out looking bad. Maybe people who question their own feelings regarding the issues in the film are those who are most offended. The reason it is funny ISN'T because he makes fun of Jews (for example). The reason it's funny is the pure RIDICULOUSNESS of a person who would actually act that way and say those things in public!!! You laugh at the ignorance and idiocy of the man, not because you agree with his statements.
Oh, and btw, the people at the dinner thought it was very funny when they saw the movie, as did the feminists. Even the homophobe at the rodeo wasn't upset with how he was depicted, because that is how he really feels (sad, yes). In fact, the only people who seemed too bothered by their portrayal were the drunk frat boys, and again, they deserve what they get for making those kind of statements.
Finally, the true comic geniuses have never been afraid of controversy. Look at the Marx brothers, Andy Kaufman, Richard Pryor, Bill Hicks . . .these people always pushed the boundaries. Comedy should be dangerous. That's how it changes things. Comedy requires bravery. True pioneers of comedy push buttons, get under people's skin, and cause chaos and controversy. Thumbs up for people like Cohen. If they disappear, we're left with mediocrity.