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It’s hard to believe it’s been 14 years since Sacha Baron Cohen took the world by storm with his elaborate prank film Borat, a film so popular that it seemed impossible he’d be able to do anything like it again. He tried a similar tactic with one of his other characters in Brüno, which I felt was more forced than funny but the film does have its fans … and it’s hard to believe the marks in that film didn’t think for a minute that it wasn’t the same guy as Borat. In the meantime, Baron Cohen has been appearing in films like Sweeney Todd and The Trial of the Chicago 7, but reports of odd things happening at CPAC in June and with Rudy Giuliani months before the reveal of the footage from the film, people began to suspect Baron Cohen was up to his old tricks.
And they were right as it was revealed a new Borat film was in production. Now that film is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video for all to see (well, those who have a subscription, that is). The question since the production was revealed is can he actually bring a character so well-known as Borat out of mothballs and trick unsuspecting marks once again? That question is answered right at the top of the film when Borat strolls down a city street, immediately recognized by fans who want an autograph. If Borat is going to succeed this time, he will have to resort to disguises … obtained at a Halloween costume shop (one costume is shown as Stupid Foreign Reporter and the salesman is surprised by the resemblance to his customer).
But Borat Subsequent Movie film isn’t quite the same as the original. This time, Borat is sent to America to deliver a gift to Vice Premiere Michael Pence — a chimpanzee to be exact. Before leaving, Borat discovers he has a daughter living in a shed outside the house and her dream is to live in a golden cage like Melania in the Disney-style animated movie she watches on TV. If she can go to America with her father, she knows she can attain that dream. But he forbids her to travel with him and through circumstances not spoiled here, she ends up being delivered to Borat, and through other circumstances not spoiled here, instead of the chimp, Borat decides his gift to Pence will be his daughter Tutar. And thus starts their journey of traveling across America and pranking ‘unsuspecting’ everyday folks.
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm is more heavily scripted than Borat as it develops this story between father and daughter, a relationship that was non-existent before now because women are treated as property in Borat’s country. So it’s actually heartwarming to see Borat’s attitude with his daughter change over the course of the film as she herself changes when she realizes what her true potential can be in America. Maria Bakalova is a real find here, able to realistically portray the daughter-father relationship while also engaging in the pranks on ordinary folks like a babysitter and a couple of Trump-loving good old boys. She really gives an amazing performance.
As for the ‘ordinary’ people, the film leaves us questioning just how much of these situations are set up and how much is real. What reason do they give for having a camera crew following Borat and Tutar? I have to question how legit the babysitter and the rednecks are. Why are these two men living together in a cabin somewhere allowing this odd man with a camera crew into their home? I have a feeling they’re all improv actors and the joke may be on us.
Amazon Prime Video
What is undeniably real are the scenes with Borat, in disguise, at a Trump rally and at CPAC interrupting Pence’s speech, as well as a scene with Borat and Tutar attending a debutante ball with the film’s most horrifyingly hilarious sight gag. These incidents were well documented when they happened but at the time no one knew Baron Cohen was behind the stunts. Of course the most outrageous scene in the film concerns Rudy Giuliani. Back when the incident occurred, Giuliani had spoken publicly about it but even then he didn’t know it was for the Borat film. And now here it is for all to see and … it’s a bit skeevy. It’s also constructed from footage shot from various hidden cameras in the bedroom so we can’t really see what’s going on between Rudy and Tutar. The position of laying on ones back to tuck in a shirt is an odd choice when he could have just stood up, but the way he reacts when he hears Borat enter the room, bolting to a complete upright position (and who knew Rudy could move that quickly) only makes his actions more suspicious. Earlier in the scene, Borat disguised as a member of the audio crew gets in a gasp-worthy line about Rudy marrying his cousin that stopped Rudy dead in his tracks. I think my heart stopped for a second in that moment because I thought Rudy was going to punch him in the face. But both parties claim different things about the incident so you as a viewer can decide for yourself if the ‘shirt tucking’ was an innocent gesture or something a bit more sleazy.
Over all, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm actually works better than it should because Baron Cohen was savvy enough to know he’d never get away with the whole Borat act a second time in a film that was more pranks than story. This film actually has a story that goes from the ridiculous to the sublime and it may even be a better film because of that effort. Nothing will top the jaw-dropping audacity of the first film for what it was, but the new film actually has a heart and Baron Cohen has found a delightful new star in Maria Bakalova.
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm has a run time of 1 hour 35 minutes and is rated R for pervasive strong crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, and language.
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