Attended 1st Ever Screening

Rating: 10/10 (4 February 2006)

Many would probably agree... this film has the potential to either be amazing or absolutely awful. Last night I attended the first ever screening in Marina Del Ray. "Borat" is not only the hardest I've laughed in a theater since "Wedding Crashers", it may be the hardest I've laughed EVER. It it expertly handled, fusing fiction with non fiction and constantly testing the boundaries of taste and decency in the best, most socially revealing ways. In many ways, it is like a meeting of "Breaking The Waves" and "Jackass". It uses confrontational non-fiction set ups to create massive discomfort, and in the process, revealing both the light and dark of it's subjects.
In fact, I found myself having a tough time labeling it. Although it is a definite step in the direction of "Jackass", it holds some of the same relevance as a Michael Moore documentary. Sasha Baren Cohen tears us apart with laughs, and in doing so, holds a mirror up to America in ways twice as revealing as any Michael Moore voice over ever could.
This film, if Fox has the guts to really give it the push it deserves, could signal a dramatic shift and appeal to a very wide 20-30 yr old, left wing, educated demographic.
This film is truly an incredible thing to witness. My film of the year thus far.