After the buzz...

Rating: 4/10 (19 January 2008)

Saw this a year after it's general release. I don't know if it's because I saw it at home instead of in a theater, or if I had already been exposed to the Borat shtick, but I didn't find this film worthwhile.
It's best when the Borat character is interacting with people one-on-one. Genuinely funny scenes with a comedy instructor and a driving instructor, and to a lesser extent at the dinner party scene.
Still, the film relies too much on shock humor. This has two primary sources - scatological references (eg, we see Borat relieving himself in some small bushes on a busy Manhattan street, and a very graphic male nude wrestling sequence), and prejudicial references, primarily to women, gays and Jews.
There are some redeeming moments, and one could make the case that the movie shows Borat's prejudices are America's prejudices, and that all prejudice is worthy of ridicule - but I doubt the target audience would tune into the message.
Appropriate for the male dorm room set, otherwise, best left on the shelf.