There could pretty much be nothing better at this moment in time than a Borat movie. The world at large is incredibly ridiculous, with the US&A (to borrow lingo from the film) taking the cake. So, I was excited to watch Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit of Once Great Nation of Kazakhstan, deep in the middle of election season insanity, to appreciate the absurdity of it all. I expected several cringe-worthy sequences, which were fulfilled. I expected a scathing critique of America’s sociopolitical atmosphere, and that was fulfilled. I was not expecting to see a touching father-daughter story that highlights the power of feminism, but I’m glad that it happened. I especially wasn’t planning on seeing one of the most powerful men in America get caught in a disgusting act, and by the time this piece is released, you’ll all know what I’m talking about.
I remember back in 2006, seeing the original Borat in the theater and dying laughing for almost its entirety. The cringe factor was high. There was shocking, gross male nudity. What more can you ask for? I never thought there would be a sequel due to the ubiquitous nature of the character and his phraseology—”My Wife,” anyone? Sacha Baron Cohen found a way around that for Borat Subsequent Moviefilm; he wears disguises over his disguises. He also uses hilarious aliases such as Johnny Chevrolet or Cliff Safari. There’s also more than one hilarious fake Kazak that’ll crack you up. No, it’s not Azamat (Ken Davitian), though we do see what’s become of him. It’s Borat’s daughter, Tutar (Maria Bakalova). Borat is tasked to go to America to give a gift to one of the highest leaders in the land. At first, it is a famous monkey named Johnny, but he meets an untimely demise in a weird way, so then it turns out Tutar will be the gift for this lucky man.
“Borat is tasked to go to America to give a gift to one of the highest leaders in the land.”
There is more than enough sociopolitical commentary in this movie, which most of us probably expected, knowing Sacha Baron Cohen. There is ample space to poke fun at pro-lifers, anti-maskers, and all those other fun folks. Cohen takes the piss out of everyone in the film, not just the ones we root on him for, but the ones that could be us. This is what I love about these social experiments that are the Borat movies and ostensibly Cohen’s brand of comedy. It is not hard to see what side of the political spectrum Cohen’s leaning to in this film, as to where it might not have been as obvious in the first go-round. I think that’s because, at this time, there’s more at stake than there’s ever been politically in our country.
I can’t give any of the big reveals that you probably want from this review; if I did that, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm would be much less effective. There is certainly at least one shocking cameo that will leave your jaw on the floor, but I’m not naming names. I can leave you to speculate who I’m talking about until you turn on Amazon Prime and watch it yourself. Just know that Sacha Baron Cohen is up to his old tricks, but he’s got some new ones, too.
"…he wears disguises over his disguises..."
