WHOA! A new standard for comedy was set on Nov. 3rd, 2006

Rating: 10/10 (5 November 2006)

I've known about Sacha B Cohen's Ali G show, which I never thought was funny. Idiotically funny, sure, but not funny in any sort of sustainable way. Right from the start, it was obvious his show couldn't stay on for more than a season (or two at best). Having witnessed the type of humor displayed on Ali G, I came in with lukewarm expectations of seeing a comedy on par with Beavis & Butthead do America or Southpark the movie. Basically, I did not think I was going to be laughing so hard, that I would damn near fall off my seat...
Alas, to my surprise, that is precisely what happened. I nearly choked twice during this movie, due to excessive laughter. My cheekbones were hurting because my face had frozen in much the same way Jack Nicholson's was in Batman as the Joker.
Cohen has taken extreme bad taste, sheer offensiveness, raw unadulterated humor, male chauvinism, bigotry (and a few other ever-present human traits :) to a new level. He has raised the bar on what comedy is, and more importantly, the power comedy has in delivering a message through satire - about how we are as humans today. While laughing maniacally, I could not help but think of all the ways certain parts of the movie applied to me. Perhaps that is what made it so funny - being able recognize one's self (or a part of one's self) in Borat.
Cohen delivered in an hour and a half what Bill Maher, Noam Chomsky & Andrew Sullivan combined could not deliver in all their writings, appearances and speeches. The satire in this movie has become an art form. I believe we're in for a long wait before we can see someone shake up the standard of comedy as well as Cohen did with Borat. Nothing else he's done before this movie comes even close to being so funny.
Go watch this, and hold on to your seat.