Borat - Will probably offend everyone (and all the better for it)

If you’re wondering whether to watch ‘Borat’ or not, you probably need to ask yourself how do you feel about its star – the man behind the moustache, aka Sacha Baron Cohen himself.  If you don’t know who he is by now, or have never heard about him, I strongly advice you look him up on the internet (there must be numerous clips of his work on Youtube for example) and, if you like what he does, then Borat will be a treat for you.

Sacha Baron Cohen is an English comedian/actor who specialises in sending up his (unsuspecting) victims by portraying outrageous characters in their vicinity and secretly filming their reactions.  Here, he plays a fictional journalist, Borat, from Kazakhstan who travels to America to do a documentary on American culture.

However, if you’re thinking that the whole film will be nothing more than ‘hidden camera antics,’ then you’ll be wrong.  It's kind of a 50/50 split, as the ‘story’ is heavily scripted around the ‘set pieces’ which make up the footage that is filmed without the knowledge of the public.  It’s most likely best to view the film as half scripted, half hidden camera and completely outrageous.

It is offensive.  Although it’s hard to say exactly who to.  Much of the debates surrounding the film centres on who should be offended more.  Some say that it portrays people from Kazakhstan poorly while others say it’s ‘anti-American’ and, in places, anti-Semitic.  I think it just mocks the world we live in and nicely points out that no one should be beyond parody.

Don’t expect a beautifully-created storyline with well-developed characters and clever story arcs, just enjoy seeing pretty much everyone sent up, as they are repeatedly amazed and appalled by the antics of the man with the moustache.  And, as I said at the beginning, if you have no idea what to expect from this film, don’t watch it.  You need to know what you’re letting yourself in for before you spend an hour and a half in the company of Borat.  Also, if you enjoyed this so much that you bought it on DVD, it’s worth noting that a lot of extra funny scenes were cut from the theatrical release and can be found on the ‘extras’ menu – don’t take the DVD out of the machine without checking those babies out!

No matter how many times I watch this film, it never gets old and the jokes don't get any the less funny.  Also, kudos to Pamela Anderson for her cameo near the end.

9/10 almost as perfect as The Godfather