Did anyone catch him on Saturday Night Live last night? Very funny!!!
Ah darn I wish I did. I'd of loved to see him on that show.
There was a full page ad of him in the newspaper today. He was in that revolting lime green thong get up lol I think his film is going to have massive turnouts with all this advertising they're doing. I can't wait to see it myself
NEW York feminist Linda Stein thought she was spreading the word on women?s rights by chatting with Sacha Baron Cohen?s gawky character, Borat. Then the reporter from Kazakhstan started talking about women walking three steps behind men (?it used to be 10 steps, my country is advancing?) and his wife?s farm work (?she pulls the plough?) . Stein lost patience when the clumsy interviewer suggested that ?women have smaller brains than men?? at which point she almost threw him out.
Cohen?s movie, Borat: Cultural Learnings Of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation Of Kazakhstan, has been hailed a great success even before it opens in the US this Friday. Is Borat offensive? I don?t think so. He makes me squirm, but comedy is supposed to make us uncomfortable. In the current ?watch what you say? climate, we need to be more verbal with our opinions, as long as we?re not provoking religious hatred or deliberately offending people for shock value.
Cohen succeeds at what he does because people with informed opinions let their guard down when dealing with someone whom they assume is slightly stupid. They stop censoring themselves, and say what they feel in answer to his shocking questions. He asks the questions we?d love to ask, and gets the answers we love to hear ? exposing some of the extreme views normally stifled by people with a public voice. Tennessee rodeo manager Bobby Rowe, cajoled by Borat into homophobic remarks, had a lot of explaining to do to the chaps in the cowboy community, and rightly so.
The people of Kazakhstan don?t seem too perturbed by the Ali G creator?s impersonations of their people. ?Borat?s Kazakhstan has nothing to do with the real Kazakhstan,? Ambassador Yerlan Idrissov has said. He thinks the film will boost his country?s popularity. Possibly in the same way deep fried Mars Bars made Glasgow look interesting for organic snacks.
In the movie, Borat is amazed that Jews are treated with respect, women can vote but horses can?t and no-one is allowed to ?make toilet? in the street. He is racist, homophobic, misogynistic, violently anti-Semitic and just plain ignorant, yet the audience appreciates his post-modern irony.
My only issue with this type of comedy is that, as with Little Britain, Cohen hides his comedic views behind a character . The public seem more accepting of offensive comedy if it?s approached through a comic alter-ego. Remember Bo Selecta?s Bear, the filthy, politically incorrect puppet that shocked every celeb it spoke to? Or Dennis Pennis, who always got laughs where straight interviewers would get punched?
The outrageous political incorrectness of Jerry Sadowitz ? who started his career in my Glasgow east end pub in 1983 ? would still give Cohen a run for his money. The difference is, Jerry does it without hiding behind a character. That I respect and intend to emulate in my own comedy. I prefer to see the real issues come straight from the horse?s mouth, without apologies. Say what you feel and stand by your statement. In my act, I tackle such taboo subjects as child abuse and murder ? and make it funny.
All the same, I?d love to see Borat approach a bunch of Scottish women at a bus stop just after the bingo had emptied. Let him tell those ladies that women have smaller brains. Now, that I would pay to see.
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This article is from The Sunday Herald, the main Scottish quality Sunday broadsheet, and Janey Godley used to be a member of the old couchtracker site, so it's good to see her moving on up...
SACHA BARON COHEN?s alter-ego BORAT stunned HUGH LAURIE on Saturday, by burying his face in his crotch on live TV. The comic pair were hosting US show Saturday Night Live, when Borat?s gestures of love for the Maybe Baby actor frothed over.
After embarrassing his co-host with his effusive body language, Borat lampooned MADONNA, ridiculing the pop diva?s recent adoption battle. He said: "This is Billack, he's 11-years-old. This is his wife she have no name because she girl. And this is their new baby. We are hoping to sell it to your popstar Madonna. We are ready to change colour of face if necessary."
And the star, who has enraged Kazakhstan authorities, continued to ridicule the nation, claiming it exported apples, potassium and bales of pubic hair. Speaking in character, Cohen said: "This bale took over three woman to make. Our pubis is finest in all of world and can be used to clean pots and pans. This year was magnificent harvest - in fact my own testes forest has barely grown back."
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