Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Year: 2020
Rating: R
Length: 95 minutes / 1.58 hours
Over the years, I’ve found two types of people: those offended by the original Borat (2006) film and those who find it funny. I’m probably in the latter camp, mostly because I can appreciate how politically incorrect comedy can be “safely” created by introducing a cultural/language barrier. 14 years later, and I’m certain that the people who didn’t find the original Borat funny won’t find the humor in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (2020).
As an American, it’s amusing to see our foibles pulled out as the butt of the joke in this film, especially after we’ve made fools of ourselves through the last decade of partisan politics and recent refusal of science and common sense. And while Borat Subsequent Moviefilm still relies on physical and sexual humor that is awkward to watch, there are moments of pure genius that I felt improved upon the original formula. Sure, there seemed to be less “unscripted” bits than before, but that’s probably why this sequel works better.
In fact, while the “shock value” is still there in moments of backward cultural standards, this actually allowed for some fantastic character development. Plus, if you want a movie that captures this unique slice in time that is 2020, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm is it. I don’t want to give away too much, but the ending is absolutely perfect and navigating the political and pandemic landscape this smartly could only be done by Borat (Sacha Baron Cohen) himself. Future films may be forced to incorporate this peculiar scenario in human history, but Borat ran with it and hit a home run.
A surprisingly effective mockumentary about 2020, I give Borat Subsequent Moviefilm 4.0 stars out of 5.
