28. The sub-title of this 2006 comedy is "Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan". By what shorter name do we know it?
From Quiz Great Comedy Films After 2000
Answer:
Borat
Advance people would line up potential venues for Borat (Sacha Baron Cohen) to interact with. They were told that Borat was a foreign visitor, unaccustomed to the English language and may say unusual things. Since they would be filming, each person had to sign a waiver. Their true objectives were hidden in the fine print. Borat shocked the volunteer participants with rudeness, anti-Semitic remarks, graphic sexual comments beyond innuendo, and broad statements and stereotypes about many minority groups. In other words it was "Candid Camera" gone raunchy, rated "R" and maybe "X".
But there is no evil intent as it is a satire, often in innocent or uninformed statements such as "She is my sister. She is number-four prostitute in whole of Kazakhstan", "He insist we not fly in case the Jews repeated their attack of 9/11", and "I arrived in America's airport with... a jar of gypsy tears to protect me from AIDS".
The only semblance of a plot is Borat's crush on Pamela Anderson who played herself; otherwise, it is surprise tricks on unsuspecting individuals and groups.
Rotten Tomatoes' rating was 91%. Its consensus said, "Part satire, part shockumentary, Borat gets high-fives almost all-around for being offensive in the funniest possible way."
The law suits were many. Romanian extras sued for being paid only 1.28 dollars for all day work, and the European Center for Antiziganism Research sued on behalf of defamed gypsies. The film was banned by many countries, including most of the Arab world, and Kazakhstan until tourism increased.
Sacha Baron Cohen is an English Jew known for developing his own characters such as Ali G and Borat, but was also praised for his supporting role in "Les Misérables" (2012).