Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Borat over exposed

Am I the only person in the world who is puzzled by the incredible over-exposure Sacha Baron Cohen's comedy attracts? For God's sake, even Christopher Hitchens devotes a column to him in Slate (although admittedly for the worthy point of correcting lefties who take the Borat movie as some sort of genuine indictment of American culture.)

I have just never found him all that funny.

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous5:08 pm

    There is also the concern that he will only be interviewed in character, which essentially negates any chance of serious jounalism - a point made by "On the Media" recently.

    I liked his role in Madagascar but the little I've seen of his interview in character act suggests Norman Gunston did it better 30 years ago.

    Geoff

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  2. Completely agree. Just what is supposed to be so wonderful and I really do think Norman Gunston was a thousand times better. Incidentally, I did a post on Gunston and Humphreys some time back.

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  3. Yes I agree with the Gunston assessment. He also did not overplay the confusion of the interviewee in the way that I think is Cohen's technique. (I mean, I think with Gunston we laughed at the Gunston character more than at the interviewee. I think Cohen is more aimed at making the audience laugh at the interviewee for being a sucked in.)

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