By Anthony Garcia
Correspondent
Sacha Baron Cohen’s new movie “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” was a great success. The revival of the Kazakhstani reporter’s over-the-top, real-life scenarios was timely given the current condition of the U.S.A.
The comedy actors’ boundary-pushing style paired with the controversial and wildly hilarious plot mixed to create more than a funny movie, but a commentary on the status of American politics and culture.
“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” features Cohen’s beloved character Borat alongside his neglected 15-year-old daughter, Tutar (Maria Bakalova).
Borat, who has been cast out by his home country of Kazakhstan, is ordered by his premiere to offer his daughter away as a gift to Vice President Mike Pence, or else he will be publicly killed.
Behind a comical mirage, the movie lends itself to a meaningful message through the awakening of Tutar to the suppression of women in her native country. The dynamic between Borat and Tutar creates a family-friendly, Disney-like tenderness to complement a blunt satirical mockery of the perception of Middle Eastern men and women in America.
The lengths to which the movie mashes together the idea of political correctness within taboo and outright awkward scenes shows the genius behind Cohen’s work. Through his acting, he pushes the envelope on topics like white supremacy, political bigotry, and COVID-19 protocols.
At one point, Borat is roaming in the deep south searching for his missing daughter when he realizes the streets are empty. He runs into a man outside of a liquor store who explains to him there is a virus and a lockdown. Borat ends up staying with the man and his brother who are radical right-wing, white, conservative men who educate him in American conspiracy theories and distrust in the Democratic party.
Borat quarantines with them, pretending to go along with their beliefs about Covid-19, QAnon and Obama’s supposed fake birth certificate, calling them “two of America’s greatest scientists.”
He goes on to attend a Trump rally with the men, which includes scenes representing the ideology of the American south. Cohen, acting as Borat disguised as an American mam, gets on stage and leads a country band in a song fully supported by the audience about Covid-19 called “Wuhan Flu” which plays on the conspiracies he learned from his stay.
The song's hook includes the encouragement of injecting people like Obama, Dr. Fauci, and journalists with the “Wuhan Flu” — this song includes a full-fledged country band singing about conspiracy and violence that the crowd chanted, cheered in support and joined in on.
Of course, we can’t talk about Borat 2 without mentioning the scene with Rudy Giuliani which made headlines. Giuliani, who himself said he did not do anything inappropriate, still went into the bedroom with Bakalova.
Even if he said he was not provocative with (the falsely reported 15-year-old) Bakalova, 24, the president’s personal attorney was seen touching his genitals after he and Bakalova went into a nearby bedroom for drinks. Let that sink in. The president’s lawyer was clearly oblivious that he agreed to tape a prank interview with a foreign actress but denied that footage of him appearing to be outright creepy? Cringey? Sexual? Was misleading because he afterwards says he realizes it was a sham, according to The Guardian.
Right when things were escalating between Tutar and Giuliani, Borat bursts in, shouting, “She’s too old for you.”
Giuliani did not take responsibility for the occurrence, and instead said he “felt good about himself” after he realized Cohen didn’t expose him.
His response in a radio interview to public outrage amidst the presidential election of the embarrassing and inappropriate footage of the former Mayor of New York City, was that he was merely tucking in his shirt and also tweeting that the allegations were a “complete fabrication.”
“At no time before, during, or after the interview was I ever inappropriate,” Giuliani said via Twitter. “If Sacha Baron Cohen implies otherwise he is a stone-cold liar.”
He went on to be quoted by The New York Post attacking Cohen’s appearance, saying he “wasn't exactly what I would call distractingly attractive,” after reporting the intrusion to the police.
This situation is not the first encapsulation of a close ally to President Trump being involved with a scandal involving sex with minors, according to the popular recent accounts by The New York Times and others of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s federal charges of teenage sex trafficking. Giuliani’s actions became part of a greater conspiracy and stigma of American politicians’ involvement with these types of scandals in both parties, with examples like the Clinton Administration (PizzaGate) and the reported abuse of underage girls with this example and more within the Trump Administration.
If you haven't seen the “Subsequent Moviefilm” yet, you should watch it. If you have seen it already, high five!
