Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)
★★★½ — Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)
By 2006, Sacha Baron Cohen had already introduced Borat Sagdiyev to British audiences through Da Ali G Show, but few could have predicted the scale of what a feature-length treatment would become. Directed by Larry Charles, who had been a writer on Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm, the film follows Borat, a fictional Kazakh television journalist, as he travels across the United States ostensibly to make a documentary about the country. The resulting footage is a blend of scripted material and genuinely unsuspecting members of the public, many of whom had no idea they were participating in anything other than a straightforward interview or encounter. Released by 20th Century Fox through the Everyman Pictures and Four by Two production companies, it arrived with a relatively modest budget for a studio comedy, and its box office performance far exceeded expectations, making it one of the more surprising commercial successes of that decade. It also generated considerable controversy in several quarters, including formal protests from the Kazakhstani government, which objected to the film's portrayal of the country.
The production sits in an interesting and genuinely awkward space between documentary, prank show, and satirical fiction. Charles and Baron Cohen were reportedly refused permission to film in Kazakhstan and shot the "Kazakh" sequences in Romania instead. The format, loosely constructed around a road trip from New York to Los Angeles, gives the film its episodic shape and allows Baron Cohen to parachute his character into a range of American settings, from rural rodeos to a Southern etiquette dinner, from a Pentecostal church to a driving lesson. The supporting cast is a mix of scripted players and real individuals. Ken Davitian appears as Borat's producer Azamat, a fictional character, while figures such as former Congressman Bob Barr and television personality Pamela Anderson appear as themselves, interacting with Borat in ways that range from the bemused to the genuinely alarming. Luenell has a small but memorable scripted role. It is worth noting that the film sits comfortably in the tradition of the British comedy of embarrassment, even if most of its targets are American, and it shares DNA with a long line of character-based provocateurs from Bernard Manning to Chris Morris.
For audiences already familiar with Baron Cohen's work on television, particularly the earlier sequel, which he also stars in, the feature film represents the fullest and most sustained version of the Borat character, with a bigger canvas and higher stakes in terms of both the set pieces and the ethical questions they raise. Whether the format holds up as comedy or tips too far into something more troubling is precisely what has kept the film discussed long after its release. Running at 84 minutes, it moves quickly, though not without the odd patch where the momentum sags.
Borat is absolutely ridiculous, wildly offensive in places, and somehow still really funny in places. Sacha Baron Cohen is fully committed as the clueless, bigoted “journalist” from Kazakhstan, barging into real-life situations with zero filter. You cringe, you laugh, you cover your eyes, sometimes all at once. It’s not just shock for shock’s sake (though there’s plenty of that), it’s sharp, dark satire wrapped in a clown suit. And honestly, the film isn’t really about Kazakhstan at all. Most of it’s a mirror held up to American culture, exposing prejudice, hypocrisy, and how easily people will go along with nonsense if it fits their assumptions. Some bits haven’t aged well (there are moments that cross lines, no question) and it’s hard to shake the ethics of some of the pranks. But the sheer audacity of it all is impressive. Whether he’s teaching kids a made-up national anthem, crashing a debutante ball, or trying to sell his bear, the joke’s rarely just on Borat. It’s on the people who welcome him, agree with his insane views, or show their own bigotry without realising they’re being exposed. The running gag about “tradition” says more about blind conformity than any lecture could. It drags a little in the second half (some bits feel repeated or stretched) but the hits far outweigh the misses. It’s messy, chaotic, and deliberately tasteless, but that’s kind of the point.
For me, that tension between laughing and wincing is exactly what keeps the film lodged in the memory, even when parts of it make you shift uncomfortably in your seat. I've seen plenty of comedies that aim for shock and land on nothing, but this one at least has a target in its sights, even if it occasionally misfires or takes a shot that sits uneasily in hindsight. The prank format raises real questions about consent and fairness that I don't think the film entirely earns its way out of, but then perhaps that discomfort is part of the point. It's the kind of film you come away from still arguing about, and that's not nothing. A messy film, then, but an oddly honest one.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2006 | Watched: 2025-08-29
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Watch in the UK
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Physical: Amazon UK · Zavvi
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