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I’m taking a break from the dry politics of the Potomac to briefly discuss the film Borat, a film that provides the perfect mix of sophomoric humor and dry wit. Some people have complained that it presents a crude picture of America as a place where everyone is stupid, and others praise it for this very thing. Truthfully, I don’t think it presents that bad an image of the United States or its people. Except for the College kids at the end, but we’ll get to that. (I don’t want to spoil too much of the film, however.)

First, the things I liked: as a satire, I deeply appreciated the moments the film had with prominent social and political movers and shakers. When he sass-mouthed Bob Barr, and got Alan Keyes to explain that a homosexual’s “friendship” with him was more than that, I beamed, and I felt the same way when he asked the Feminists his loaded, ridiculous questions, though in that scene I saw a trait that I find most unappealing in humans. I think people need to get over themselves, and that more than anything showed in that segment. Life is too short to live not being able to laugh at something ridiculous or to live incapable of letting someone else’s ignorance slide. I’m notorious for smirking as someone insults me, and I thought it was a little sad that the Feminists threw a hissy fit and stormed off because a foreigner let his cultural beliefs show.

I thought the College kids at the end showed off a very bad side of America but beyond that, I don’t think anything in the film was particularly negative about America (though the, ah, cowboy who said we should hang gays was quite over-the-top). Everyone was courteous to Borat (except when he tried to kiss them on the street) until he really crossed the line, at which point nobody brutalized him or anything.

It’s a good, entertaining film. Just don’t look to it for too much of a glimpse into American society. No book or movie can really illustrate a society as well as it should be illustrated because wherever you go, you’re bound to find people that blow away your perceptions.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 17th, 2006 at 5:57 pm and is filed under Outside Retort (Current Affairs).