Or, Democracy & Porno in America by Alexis de Toiletville

Rating: 6/10 (5 November 2006)

Darwin's Rule of Moviewatching #57: Anything in which an ugly hooker is the most sympathetic character should not be watched while eating. For proof, see Woody Allen's "Deconstructing Harry," South Park's "Chickenpox," and "Borat." The long, broken-English title accurately describes the premise: inept, degenerate Kazakh state TV journalist Borat (Cohen, from the character he created) and his long-suffering producer Azamat (Davitian) go to New York to conduct interviews with real Americans, to get a snapshot of American culture as well as some sex, if possible. Borat first introduces us to his village, including his hateful neighbor, his massive wife, the town rapist ("only humans!") and the mechanic/abortionist. The highlight of his New York visit is his interview of veteran feminists ("Give me smile, baby!"). After seeing "Baywatch," he dragoons Azamat into a quest to California to find & marry CJ (Anderson). There's absolutely nothing new to "Borat," since the premise follows that of Hunter Thompson's "Fear & Loathing" & Christopher Guest's "Spinal Tap," as well as French historian Alexis de Tocqueville's first-person survey of America in the 1830s. The "Kazakh" language is patterned after Charlie Chaplin's "Tomanian" lingo in "The Great Dictator" and the gags are lifted from comics from the Marx Brothers to Benny Hill to the creators of "South Park," these last noted in the credits. Cohen & director Charles nevertheless picked proved winners & their pacing is good, never letting the film get dull. Like Guest's characters, Borat skewers American traditions, presumptions & prejudices by blindsiding people with his, shall we say, very different characteristics. These include: kissing men in greeting, strict & subjective sexism, virulent anti-Semitism, a complete lack of toilet training & admiring the US for being a mighty military dictatorship. To say that "Borat" is scatological is like saying "Hoosiers" has basketball in it. Some scenes, including Borat proudly bringing his feces & a fat hooker to a genteel Southern dinner party & his protracted, nude chase & punch-up with Azamat in a hotel are probably hard to take for most people, although Cohen's sheer comic talent & timing make them really, really funny. Borat's driving lesson & his shopping for a "pussy magnet" to drive across the US are a hilarious satire of modern America's most cherished & most delusional cultural institution: the style, freedom & machismo of automobiles. It would be hard to top Leslie Nielsen's rendition of the National Anthem in "The Naked Gun," but Cohen scores, singing the "Kazakh" national anthem to the tune of the "Star Spangled Banner" at a Texas rodeo while dressed in red, white & blue ("Kazakhstan is the greatest nation in the world/All other countries are run by little girls"). "Borat" is actually rather highbrow, requiring a knowledge of American history & tradition, as well as some idea of how the rest of the world views the US, to be fully appreciated. Unfortunately, the thought required also exposes inconsistencies in Borat's background. If Borat is so utterly clueless about America, how did he learn to speak English? Since American-pattern TV shows have long been available worldwide, why would Borat assume that CJ is a real person? And if he's a neo-Stalinist stuffed shirt professional, why does Borat live in a dumpy but colorful village instead of a bland Communist high-rise? Borat's Kazakhstan evokes no sympathy or understanding, a missing-link dump populated by toothless, incestuous primates content to wallow in their own feces. Indeed, the film's biggest flaw is that Borat & Azamat are too filthy & perverted--and Borat too moronic--to evoke sympathy, even allowing for "cultural" differences. Nor does Cohen really try to humanize Borat until the second half. The closest he comes is when Borat, after hitting rock bottom, accepts "Mr. Jesus" at an evangelist service--yet another comic triumph brilliantly balanced on the edge of a knife. Luenell, as the hooker, provides the only really human touch as she has a "good time" with Borat at a honky-tonk (their scenes on the mechanical bull turn a sappy scene into a laugh riot). Anderson, appearing as herself & listed in the credits as such, never comes across as anything but a micro-shallow, self-serving sex object & inadvertent porn star, so let's not hear anything from her--ever--about how there's more to her. In the end, "Borat" winds up laughing at America and the fictional Kazakhstan, not with them, since everyone ultimately comes across as either irredeemably degenerate or inexcusably hypocritical. Still, it has to be seen in its entirety to appreciate the many funny parts--and those are very much worth it.