It's strength is also its weakness

Rating: 5/10 (27 November 2007)

Jak sie masz! My name a 81Sorp! Well, not really, but let's not sweat the details.
Borat, a reporter from "Kazakhstan" travels to the U.S and A to learn about the great country in the west and hopefully learn how to deal with his own country's problems who he himself says are: "social, economical and jew". In the U.S and A he sees a TV show called "Baywatch", falls in love with the voluptuous Pamela Anderson Lee and descides to travel all over the U.S and A to meet her and her very appealing bosom. On the road to his dream girl many cultural misunderstandings ensues.
This "Documentary" has some funny moments and some half funny moments that are OK. If you've seen Sacha Baron Cohen's earlier work it's the same old stuff he has done before: interview people who don't know it's a joke and get confused and/or angered. It's built on a lot of improvisation from Cohen's part which has its good and bad sides. The good is that it's spontaneous reaction from his interview victims and the funny misunderstandings from these people who think it's for real. The bad is that more than a few improv-jokes become very lowbrow and potty-oriented. Many times it relies on shock, testing the boundaries and obscenity to create laughs, like nudity and aforementioned potty humor. Maybe it's just me but I grew up with and expected a slightly more clever British humor than this. However, all in all it's not all bad. Half the humor comes from his interview victims who fit the picture of the conservative American, out of touch with the rest of the world. THIS was was more of the cleverness that I had expected and wish there had been more of.
Cohen could have toned down Borats acted craziness and given more room to these peoples real craziness.
That's all from me. Now if you excuse me, I have to go and milk my goats.
Dziekuje!