There is no better time to release the box set of HBO’s funniest half hour; with Borat being touted as one of the funniest movies of all time, Sacha Baron Cohen has been comedy’s best kept secret for a while now.
If you don’t know the show; or who this man is, you’re probably very shy and don’t watch too much on telly. There are three characters, all of different descent. Ali G, the star of our show is a ghetto English dude with crazy colored suits and heavy chains. He’s a moron by all means; but always finds the right guests with high intelligence who are astonished by the man’s stupidity. He also finds the time to have four guests on his own show to have a sit down discussion on topics ranging from sex to science.
Then of course you have Borat, a simple man from Kazakhstan who does things differently then we do here in America. He finds woman to be lower on the food chain, and he doesn’t have a problem talking about sex or farting in public. He’s innocent by all means and just wants to understand our culture, but finds himself in a conservative country who just don’t get him; understandably. He enjoys shooting dogs in the field as a hobby and isn’t shy about revealing his prostitute sister who by the way is number two in the mouth.
Then when you think you’ve seen it all; there’s the third of his personas who is the least popular to date. Bruno is a flamboyant homosexual from Austria who’s very open to people and loves fashion. He’s not always accepted as he finds himself in Alabama and other uptight communities that feel most uncomfortable with his effeminate sensibilities.
Each persona could have their own half hour; but the mix of characters gives the show a backbone to always fall back on. One minute you’re intrigued by what Ali will ask a senator and the next you fear Bruno’s life as he cheerleads for an Alabama football game. (Perhaps this skit, shot in the most redneck of areas, was one of his best).
Then as if the movie weren’t enough, there are plenty of Borat moments that are just as good as anything in the recent film.
The man is a genius. He never breaks character and for all I know they are all real people he portrays. There is not one hint of trying to be funny or putting on for the camera; it is all in the moment and its real people reacting to something they just can’t believe. Each character is funny, and they all pick each other up if one skit doesn’t work. Cohen has brought comedy back to the surface; and depressingly it took someone from another country to do it.
The bonus features are awesome; with the original “Spyz” movie Ali G pitched for Hollywood, some great deleted Borat ...
