It’s been a long while since we’ve had Borat on our screens. So it was quite the surprise to see that we were getting a sequel. In this day of hyper-politicism and awareness of the character, it’s astounding how the sequel, Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm got made. Somehow, someway, Sacha Baron Cohen and his team duped the nation once again. The story revolves around Borat and his quest to gain the favor of strongman McDonald Trump. This time around though, he’s not making the trip with Azamat. The plot revolves around Borat trying to get a gift to Michael Pence to gain the favor of the US’s great leader.
If that’s something that makes you angry, pisses you off, or makes you want to comment on this review. You should 100% not watch this movie. If you’re offended easily, this is also not the movie for you. But if you’re looking for a laugh-out-loud comedy that comments on some of the more farcical elements of our society, this is going to be right at home.
Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm Is Like Watching A Trainwreck Mixed With Facebook Conspiracy Groups
Without ruining the best jokes and parts of the film, Borat 2 is one of the funniest movies of the year. Also like the first film, it has a surprising charm mixed in with that shocking humor. Somehow Sacha Baron Cohen can make a character as backwards and idiotic as Borat into someone that you want to root for. Some of the sketches/parts to the film are truly shocking in the way that it doesn’t make sense how people wouldn’t be in on the joke. There are multiple sections of the film that are sure to not please sections of the American populace. If you can see the sheer absurdity of it all, that’ll be the best way to view this film.
There aren’t any sections that will outright gross you out like some of the scenes in the first film with Azamat. It’s more about the reactions of the people that Cohen is tricking. The story involving his daughter and the quest that the film is centered around is what’s the center of the narrative. If the first film felt like a series of interconnected sketches, this one actually has a narrative.
The time that Borat spends with two conspiracy theory spilling men during the beginning of quarantine is the real highlight. Like the first film, it has a truly shocking finale. It’ll make you wonder just how someone who is that high up in government would allow themselves to be put into that situation.
The true highlight is the resolution in the third act. After Borat’s mission is done, you get the truly surprising reason why Borat was sent back to America. And it’s perfect. In so many ways.
Borat 2 Still Has A Strange, Bewildering Heart
Somehow, like I said before, the film has an unbelievable heart. It requires Cohen to wear a few more costumes than just the normal Borat getup, but the scenes where he can just be Borat are the best in the film. There are also tender moments in the film that show you, while Borat might be ass-backwards in his views, others are not. In a particularly hopeful moment, he goes to a Synagogue dressed in the most stereotypical anti-Jewish costume you can imagine. Instead of getting vitriol and being thrown out, the two older women there take him in, show him that they’re not the monsters that Borat believes them to be, and they even feed him.
It’s one of the most touching moments in a film that’s surrounded with the hatred and partisanship that you can think of in today’s American climate.
Borat’s Daughter Steals The Show
Maria Bakalova outright steals the thunder from Cohen in this film. If his level of comedy and character work is the top, she comes right for that title here. At no point does it seem like she’s outmatched or underprepared. She fully goes for every scene and by the end of the movie, you’ll be more impressed by her than not. Borat 2 needed a character like this after the first film was the expose for Cohen’s talents for a wider audience. We all know that he can perform characters that no one else can. Now we all can see that Bakalova can do so too.
Misinformation Is Really The Target Of Cohen With This Film
Misinformation about anything is dangerous. Misleading content about a virus, a political opponent, or anything else is what gets the US into a lot of trouble. Borat 2 lampoons all of that beautifully. And most importantly, it doesn’t hit you over the head with it. The film takes you on a 90 minute ride that will make you laugh, gasp, and smile. If you’re uptight, you will not like Borat 2. But judge for yourself whether you need more Borat in your life. If you take off the blinders of political correctness and just enjoy the ride, you’ll be laughing until your sides split.
Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm is one of the funniest films of the year and cements Sacha Baron Cohen’s already lofty place in the annals of comedy history. You won’t regret watching it. It’ll bring a goofy smile to your face, and somehow after watching it, you’ll feel a bit better. Even if the subject matter is ridiculous and lampoons the every day life we have to deal with.
You can watch Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm on Amazon Prime Video starting October 23rd and if there’s a recommendation I make on a new film this year, it’s probably this one.
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