Question:
there's a bounty in Kazakhstan on Sascha Baron Cohen's head.
I see Salman Rushdie walking around a lot more freely even though the fatwa from Iran has not been lifted. In fact it was confirmed in 2006. 8 years of having a death sentence which can be carried out by any of the 1 point whatever Muslims there are would make me take up smoking again.
peace
Gary

Answer:
I really think the film was about as subversive as what israel just finished doing to lebanon. Although the main point of it is simply for the audience to look down at a parade of cretins for 90 minutes and feel superior. I mean it was so not funny. Yes kids screaming at the bear was funny. "these 2 are hot, this one not so much" was mean funny. "what kind of dog is that" regarding the tortoise was cute mean funny.
but his masturbating outside victoria's secret, kissing his sister, almost all the other gags, the painfully obviously fake set up ones with people on the street threatening him, so lamely exectued, were just atavistic, just like a total consciousness lowering excersize for the public. let's all demean ourselves. isn't this fun. and the fact that an ethnicity a people are like the occasion for it... well, so what right? who cares? exactly. that's exactly what the film seems to be going for.
and what did work in Ali G didn't here cause poor Sascha is in such a hurry to tell this "story" such as it is, this road film literally has ground to cover, that nobody really gets a chance to do anything interesting in the way of self immolation. I mean we get the reaction of a politican over hearing cheese came from Borat's wife's tit. Oh that's really deep, doesn't that get you thinking about the state of the world. The rodeo scene was aa highlight certainly but I don't see anything really shocking about the fact that people at war can be bloodthirsty. especially when you consider many of the poeple in that arena might have lost sons and brothers to this war.
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I just read an item about how among the many lawsuits filed in the wake of the movie one is on behalf of the people from the opening of the film who were told they were participating in a documentary about poverty where they live. Guess they were "punked" cause in reality they lent themselves to a "comedy" depicting them as incestuous, bestiality loving sub humans. Despicable.

Answer:
Originally Posted by supermarky I really think the film was about as subversive as what israel just finished doing to lebanon. Although the main point of it is simply for the audience to look down at a parade of cretins for 90 minutes and feel superior. I mean it was so not funny. Yes kids screaming at the bear was funny. "these 2 are hot, this one not so much" was mean funny. "what kind of dog is that" regarding the tortoise was cute mean funny.
but his masturbating outside victoria's secret, kissing his sister, almost all the other gags, the painfully obviously fake set up ones with people on the street threatening him, so lamely exectued, were just atavistic, just like a total consciousness lowering excersize for the public. let's all demean ourselves. isn't this fun. and the fact that an ethnicity a people are like the occasion for it... well, so what right? who cares? exactly. that's exactly what the film seems to be going for.
and what did work in Ali G didn't here cause poor Sascha is in such a hurry to tell this "story" such as it is, this road film literally has ground to cover, that nobody really gets a chance to do anything interesting in the way of self immolation. I mean we get the reaction of a politican over hearing cheese came from Borat's wife's tit. Oh that's really deep, doesn't that get you thinking about the state of the world. The rodeo scene was aa highlight certainly but I don't see anything really shocking about the fact that people at war can be bloodthirsty. especially when you consider many of the poeple in that arena might have lost sons and brothers to this war.
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I just read an item about how among the many lawsuits filed in the wake of the movie one is on behalf of the people from the opening of the film who were told they were participating in a documentary about poverty where they live. Guess they were "punked" cause in reality they lent themselves to a "comedy" depicting them as incestuous, bestiality loving sub humans. Despicable.
I couldn 't agree more with your analysis! I was so bored with the movie, the stereotypes concept is so lame, when people are caricaturized it 's never profound and in this case never takes into account the complexity of situations and cultural backgrounds. at least if only Ali G was a real muslim from Kazakhstan but he 's a british jewish man and that makes a big difference...well just imagine the other way round LOL no comment.

Answer:
That and the poor village part was filmed in Romania. Some documentary.
- Rich