Da Ali G Show

Ali G comes from Staines, and his larger than life obsession with Staines, drugs and all things youth like will make him a huge hit.

Take a dose of Goodness Gracious Me, a dollop of Louis Therioux, a whole lot of a gangster rapper attitude, mixed with a quantity of recreational drugs and no fear of saying what he thinks to get Ali G.

If you can hang up your hang ups and chill out with the TV Ali G will have you rolling around even if like me your well past the obvious youth market audience.

Ali G has several characters, taking on the persona of a dumb rapper, he deliberately misinterprets his interviewees with such style and conviction that they seem to really believe him and have to climb down to the kindergarten level.

His apparent naivety as he says to the man from the home office with a display of narcotics "it's not as if it's illegal is it?" (The poor man had no idea what to say or where to turn.) and the skill with which he brings down the top dog from the FBI whom he takes literally whilst making a figurative comment about doing a hypothetical crime. Suggesting that is was not such a good idea to talk about the job whilst the cameras were on.

Behind it all is a great talent who enjoys performing his art as much as I do watching it.

I never know whether to simply laugh out loud (which I do) or clap my hands at the sheer audacity, the self control Cohen must need to spoof so many people so well. But usually it's a moot point, since I'm laughing too hard to do anything at all! "Ali G" has an uncanny ability to push his victim's buttons, all the while acting as an incredibly ignorant and occasionally boorish interviewer. Watch him take on Pat Buchanan ("'Ow many times was you President?"), Sam Donaldson ("Does you remember the scandal when da two journalists brought down the guv'mint in the scandal of Waterworld?") or Buzz Aldrin ("Was you jealous because Louis Armstrong was the first person to walk on da sun?") He also goes on location to farms ("Obviously some so't of trash zoo,") hangs with the tree huggers in Oregon, and visits an anti-gay rights rally with predictable results. Like his idol George Bush, he proves to be the biggest, clumsiest bull in the most delicate of china shops, with hilarious results.

Cohen can rightly claim the throne vacated by the late Peter Sellers, with none of the frightening edge that Sellers developed in later life. As Ali G himself would say, "Total Respec!"

Ali is the best personality on television. I live in America and only found out about him from a friend but once I saw him I couldn't stop laughing. This guy is hilarious and would take America by storm if his show ever aired here. I recommend that everyone watches this guy at least once and I'll guarantee that you'll be coming for more.

At this point in his career, Cohen has made a movie for all three of the characters who are frequent in this show, and I have to say that I prefer all of their appearances in Da Ali G Show to their full-length movies, although that may be because they work better in this setting. The show has no real determination to establish and maintain a followable plot-line, and it ends up as a collection of short segments from each character every episode. This allows Sascha Baron Cohen to remain calm, clear-headed, and to really fire on all cylinders with the sometimes improvised, always hilarious sketches.

The show is comprised mostly of interviews arranged for in the field, but Ali G does have studio interviews where he asks others to come to him and discuss controversial topics. The premise of the show is basically the humor behind a clash of culture, and we frequently see the characters in situations where they simply do not belong. Ali G and Borat both have a kind of ignorant edge, making them totally absorbed into the culture they're used to and at times lethal around people with different backgrounds. Bruno plays a lesser role in the show, and really isn't one of my favorite characters all together, but his goal is basically to surround himself with people unaccustomed to gay culture and to make them writhe in discomfort.

Borat's interview with a dating service and Ali G's forum on porno and abstinence are absolutely hysterical, and Ali G even has an interview terminated for "stupidity".

I think that this show, more than any of the movies displays the characters in their best light, and also shows more than anything how talented Sascha really is. There were times when viewing this show that I stopped laughing prematurely to acknowledge how truly impressed I was that he was able to keep a straight face while unleashing absolute nonsense based on real (albeit exaggerated) stereotypes.

If you like comedy, then you'll love Da Ali G show. The show features a British-Jamaican b-boy that goes by the name of Ali G, A reporter from Kazakhstan whom just happens to be an over erratic nymphomaniac and a hard-hitting gay fashonista named Bruno(All portrayed by Sascha Baron Cohen). This show will make you laugh until you cry, and will make you smile in joy until you weep openly. Cohen is comic brilliance, he is excellent in his endless cynical and often aggressive wit. If you saw the movie Ali G Indahouse and you weren't exactly thrilled with what it had to offer and found Ali G repulsive, don't let that keep you from watching this show. There are three completely unique and utterly hilarious characters on this show. This show is quite amazing, I know I am starting to go on an endless rave but this show deserves every ounce of praise it gets. I am merely sour over the fact that there won't be a third season, or at least that's what it looks like from where we now stand... although I wouldn't be too sure about that!