An incredibly funny film-if you don't take it (or yourself) too seriously
I'm almost ashamed to admit that I absolutely hated this film the first time I saw it, when it was released in theaters 17 years ago. At the time, I was a self-righteous 18-year-old that took herself and the world far too seriously.
What put me off the most about Borat was that it seemed to be celebrating the kind of guy Borat is-a misogynistic, anti-semitic, homophobic jerk. What's more is that most of the people he meets on his journey seem to be cut from the same cloth as he, and the film almost seemed to poke fun at those that were not. I was particularly offended by the scene where Borat stays at a B-and-B run by a nice, elderly, Jewish couple that treat him kindly and graciously. His treatment of them seemed too harsh for me, and what offended me was that the film seemed to take his side.
In retrospect, I cannot believe how blind I was, and how ignorant I was to blow off this movie so that I would not revisit it until so many years later. In the years since my initial viewing, I've grown more accustomed to and familiar with Cohen's style of comedy (especially his character Bruno). I'm not sure, but I think it was because I loved his later film of Bruno so much that I decided to give this one another shot.
What I failed to grasp on my initial viewing as an 18-year-old was that the movie is actually making fun of all those misogynistic jerks that Borat comes across on his journey. That they were real people that actually believed the things that Borat says, and that we, in the audience, are supposed to see them as villains rather than protagonists. In the vignette at the Jewish B-and-B, we are supposed to realize that Borat is so incredibly stupid for being afraid of these nice people, that his fears are groundless and hysterical. Other scenes, such as those with the frat boys, are supposed to grab us because it assumes we know that those boys are losers who get what they deserve by being exposed like this in a movie.
All-in-all, I'm so glad I gave Borat another chance, and if you misinterpreted it the way I did when you saw it, maybe you should stop taking yourself so seriously and re-think your attitudes a little. Laughter is the best medicine, especially for an illness such as a closed mind.
What put me off the most about Borat was that it seemed to be celebrating the kind of guy Borat is-a misogynistic, anti-semitic, homophobic jerk. What's more is that most of the people he meets on his journey seem to be cut from the same cloth as he, and the film almost seemed to poke fun at those that were not. I was particularly offended by the scene where Borat stays at a B-and-B run by a nice, elderly, Jewish couple that treat him kindly and graciously. His treatment of them seemed too harsh for me, and what offended me was that the film seemed to take his side.
In retrospect, I cannot believe how blind I was, and how ignorant I was to blow off this movie so that I would not revisit it until so many years later. In the years since my initial viewing, I've grown more accustomed to and familiar with Cohen's style of comedy (especially his character Bruno). I'm not sure, but I think it was because I loved his later film of Bruno so much that I decided to give this one another shot.
What I failed to grasp on my initial viewing as an 18-year-old was that the movie is actually making fun of all those misogynistic jerks that Borat comes across on his journey. That they were real people that actually believed the things that Borat says, and that we, in the audience, are supposed to see them as villains rather than protagonists. In the vignette at the Jewish B-and-B, we are supposed to realize that Borat is so incredibly stupid for being afraid of these nice people, that his fears are groundless and hysterical. Other scenes, such as those with the frat boys, are supposed to grab us because it assumes we know that those boys are losers who get what they deserve by being exposed like this in a movie.
All-in-all, I'm so glad I gave Borat another chance, and if you misinterpreted it the way I did when you saw it, maybe you should stop taking yourself so seriously and re-think your attitudes a little. Laughter is the best medicine, especially for an illness such as a closed mind.
- elisereid-29666
- Jun 12, 2023