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Movies / Upcoming / Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

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Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)

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Reviews Counted:204

Fresh:186

Rotten:18

Average Rating:8/10

Consensus: Jagshemash! Borat gets high-fives almost all-around for being offensive in the funniest possible way. Part satire, part shockumentary, Borat stars Sacha Baron Cohen as the gleefully sexist, homophobic, and anti-Semitic title character on a cross-country trek to learn more about our strange nation; along the way he dredges up the seamy underbelly of American prejudice and ignorance. Now the cat is out of the bag, what will Cohen do for an encore?

Runtime: 86 mins

Genre: Comedies

US Box Office: $128,387,996

Synopsis: Jagshemash! Sacha Baron Cohen, the star and creator of HBO's "Da Ali G Show," brings his Kazakh journalist character Borat Sagdiyev to the big screen for the first time. Leaving his native... Jagshemash! Sacha Baron Cohen, the star and creator of HBO's "Da Ali G Show," brings his Kazakh journalist character Borat Sagdiyev to the big screen for the first time. Leaving his native Kazakhstan, Borat travels to America to make a documentary. As he zigzags across the nation, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences. His backwards behavior generates strong reactions around him, exposing prejudices and hypocrisies in American culture. In some cases, Borat's interview subjects embrace his outrageous views on race and sex by agreeing with him, while others attempt to offer a patriotic lesson in Western values. Wa-wa-wee-wa! Hilarious. Jaw-dropping. Inflammatory. Dangerous. Subversive. Borat, a satirical Kazakh journalist caricature invented and portrayed by Sacha Baron Cohen, has been called all this – and more. Borat became a phenomenon in the U.K. with the comedy series "Da Ali G Show," in which Baron Cohen's outlandish humor and razor-sharp satire on anti-Semitism, misogyny and racism, came to life through his creation's bizarre behavior and interviews. Baron Cohen's innovative and unique work has brought him two BAFTA awards. "Da Ali G Show" was a worldwide phenomenon, and Baron Cohen is the only person to twice host the European MTV Awards. Dictionaries added two words based on his characters' "inventive" use of the English language, and even the Queen Mother was a fan. In addition, Baron Cohen received critical plaudits for his role opposite Will Ferrell in this summer's blockbuster comedy "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby." Also, Baron Cohen was the voice of the King of the Lemurs in "Madagascar." Even before its release, critics heralded BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN as one of the funniest pictures of all time, and it became the highest-rated comedy on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB.com). The film's humor and acclaim stem from its comedy "dream team": Sacha Baron Cohen, Larry Charles from "Seinfeld" and Jay Roach, director of the "Austin Powers" films. Baron Cohen and Roach are the film's producers, with Charles serving as director. The production of BORAT – as one might expect about a project centered on the character – was unlike any other. Baron Cohen, whose commitment to the role is unwaveringly intense, stayed in character through the shooting, and elected to conduct publicity and interviews promoting the picture, as Borat. --© 20th Century Fox [More]

Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Pamela Anderson, Ken Davitian

Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Pamela Anderson, Ken Davitian

Director: Larry Charles

Director: Larry Charles
Producer: Jay Roach
Studio: 20th Century Fox

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make...

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; Australian critics are listed first)
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A film that ignites the baser passions, satisfies the lowest common denominator and makes sure that it offends equally. That is the film's weakness and why it is a quick hit with no lasting value.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
11/18/06
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: In Film Australia | comment Comment
11/24/06
Luke Buckmaster
Luke Buckmaster
In Film Australia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Evil comedy, a new genre, has arrived. The bar has been raised and is flying over everyone’s head. A fearless comedy.

Full Review Source: FilmsInReview.com | comment 4 Comments
09/28/06
Victoria Alexander
Victoria Alexander
FilmsInReview.com

The more I considered Borat, the better and funnier it grew.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment 2 Comments
11/02/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

The backlash just proves how deep a nerve the faux Kazakh journalist has hit.

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
11/01/07
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek

In spots, the movie can be hysterical. But, for the most part, its appeal is not unlike that of a veteran rock band putting on a greatest hits concert.

Full Review Source: Cinema Writer | comment Comment
11/20/06
Jay Antani
Jay Antani
Cinema Writer

1) See the movie and laugh. 2) Go out and do something very sweet for someone you don't even know to balance things out.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Report Card | comment Comment
12/04/06
Ross Anthony
Ross Anthony
Hollywood Report Card

Reviewer is disappointed!

Full Review Source: BBC | comment 31 Comments
10/28/06
Paul Arendt
Paul Arendt
BBC

It's offensively funny in places but it can't sustain itself for a feature length running time and it's not nearly as clever or as fun as it should be.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment 40 Comments
11/02/06
William Arnold
William Arnold
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Plucky, uproarious and totally uncompromising.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
10/31/06
Jeanne Aufmuth
Jeanne Aufmuth
Palo Alto Weekly

After a while, the gaggle of idiots, creeps and stuffed shirts Borat comes in contact with becomes repetitive.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment 7 Comments
12/01/06
Lewis Beale
Lewis Beale
Film Journal International

To paraphrase a great possum: We have met the racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic crazy Kazakh, and he is us.

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
11/06/06
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

Is Borat the funniest comedy of the year? Almost certainly -- but what's the competition?

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment 7 Comments
10/30/06
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

Expect to laugh uproariously; expect to choke back horror and revulsion, often at yourself.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment 1 Comment
11/03/06
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

Borat may be marked as a clownish, regressive foreigner, but as often as not in America he seems right at home.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
07/02/07
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

I highly recommend Borat to anyone like myself with zero emotional I.Q., those with a thick skin for when former friends decide you're a moron by association, and the wise people who believe that Jackass was shafted for the 2002 Oscar.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
11/03/06
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post

Riotously funny.

Full Review Source: Houston Community Newspapers | comment Comment
11/04/06
Gary Brown
Gary Brown
Houston Community Newspapers

Borat is often convulsively, savagely funny, but beneath the scatology and mockery rests a knowingness about the manner in which societal prejudices can be hidden, diverted and even encouraged.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
11/01/06
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Un falso documental bastante transgresor e irregular que desafía lo políticamente correcto. Su mayor logro es desnudar la hipocresía, el racismo y la xenofobia del estadounidense promedio.

Full Review Source: Uruguay Total | comment Comment
02/22/07
Enrique Buchichio
Enrique Buchichio
Uruguay Total

...a fall-on-your-face, pee-in-your-pants screaming riot of wild racism, leering sexism and all-around grotesque intolerance...and believe it or not, it's on the side of the angels.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Weekly | comment 2 Comments
11/01/06
Sean Burns
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly
 
 
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Latest News for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America...

June 18, 2008: Bruno Gets a Release Date Opens in new window
Universal has found a spot for Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno on the release schedule, slotting it against Angels & Demons on May 15, 2009. More...

April 07, 2008: Bill Maher Gets A Religulous New Poster Opens in new window
Noted politically incorrect television host and out of the closet atheist Bill Maher may be the new Borat. Or something like it. He's making a movie with Larry Charles, one of... More...

March 31, 2008: Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno Goes to Kansas
Just a few short years after baffling and enraging Middle Americans with Borat, Sacha Baron Cohen is back...as Bruno. More...

March 04, 2008: Rush Hour 3 Takes '07 DVD Rental Crown
It may not have been quite the box-office phenomenon that its predecessors were -- and critics may have disliked it enough to keep it down at 20 percent on the Tomatometer --... More...

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