Not as Funny as I'd Heard, But Has Its Moments

Rating: 7/10 (2 February 2007)

My guess is that if you've never seen the Borat character before (on "Da Ali G Show" on HBO or DVD), you'll probably think "Borat" is hysterical. However, as one who was already familiar with the character, the movie was a bit of a letdown, especially considering the hype around it.
Yes, there were some very funny scenes, but there were also stretches of not-so-funny or I've-already-seen-this scenes. What really works is when Borat is interacting with "civilians" who *know* they're on camera and have *agreed* to be on camera. To me, that's always been the beauty of Cohen's comedy. What's much less amusing are innocent passers-by reacting to Borat imposing himself upon them. The staged scenes between Borat and the people of his village (including his producer "Azmarat") don't work as well, either. (A notable exception takes place in a hotel room, but I don't want to elaborate with a spoiler.) I rate this movie 7 out of 10. If you equate outrageousness with humor (as did, in my opinion, the people who *loved* "There's Something About Mary"), you'll like it more than I did. I, however, was raised on Monty Python, so while outrageousness can be part of the package (e.g. the Black Knight scene in "Holy Grail"), for me, there's got to be a little more behind it than simply shock value. Sometimes, "Borat" succeeds in this, but just as often, it doesn't.