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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
When it was announced that actor Sacha Baron Cohen completed principal photography on another Borat film last month, I had to keep an eye out for its eventual release. Undergoing a few subtitles in the beginning, the successor project to the Golden Globe Award-winning 2006 mockumentary stands out in the storyline that is explored. Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev (Baron Cohen) is taken out of the gulag for disrespecting his country and is given a chance at redemption by offering a gift to the United States of America’s current politicians. For the sake of this review, I shall not be revealing any spoilers and shall hence keep this article rather short.
Sagdiyev returns to America, this time accompanied by his daughter Tutar Sagdiyeva (Maria Bakalova), and they find ways to transform and mold themselves while at the same time “inadvertently” making surrounding white Americans nervous and uncomfortable. The cinematography (by Luke Geissbühler) and direction (Jason Woliner) are great, but what sticks out most are the performances of both Baron Cohen and Maria Bakalova as well as their willingness to go the length. The film’s subtitle changes happen for a reason, as the film begins with a monkey planned on being presented to the Vice President of the Trump regime, but ends up with a bribe (or rather, bride) to another American politician of a high position on behalf of Kazakhstan, resulting in the sequel’s final full title: Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.
Borat and Tutar encounter what seems some of the most close-minded and ill-conceived persons of the Western nation, from an Instagram influencer to a pro-life crisis pregnancy center pastor, to conservative Republican feminists, and more. The only individuals worth of merit are Tutar’s Black babysitter — who teach her about femininity — and a couple of elderly Jewish women (one is a Holocaust survivor), who prove that Borat’s anti-Semitic Kazakh beliefs are ridiculous and outrageous. Altogether, the father/daughter duo learns the errors of their ways (primarily Borat’s) and soon discovers that to save their own nation, they must unravel a conspiracy beneath the layers of alt-right America. (Although, there might be at least one person of the many who openly expresses her repugnance for her conservative society and their actions.)
Baron Cohen and Bakalova don so many lovely costumes, which is what makes Baron Cohen’s characters who they are. The inclusion of the pandemic only makes the circumstances for the story worse, although it sheds light on what is wrong in the Western world. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm takes jabs at figures and capitalist corporations that contribute to the wrong movement, such as Kanye West, Dog the Bounty Hunter, Walt Disney (through references to Mickey Mouse and Cinderella), and Facebook. By doing so, the film examines and critiques misperceptions for oppressed minorities, specifically women and Jews.
Overall, the film is more mentally and politically chaotic than its predecessor, which focused on Sagdiyev’s search for Hollywood celebrity Pamela Anderson and may have done a lot more physical damage to racist America. This time around, Sagdiyev and his daughter reach inside of their victims and lay visceral ruin to numerous bystanders. By releasing in October, it only feels necessary that we are reminded who the real monsters are, that those who want to control others’ bodies cannot even properly take care of their own. It is almost as if to suggest that Baron Cohen can do no wrong in his quest to present the truth. In addition to this, we hope to see more of Bakalova sometime in the future!
Have you seen this film yet? If so, what did you think? Let us know! For more comedy and Sacha Baron Cohen-related news and reviews follow The Cinema Spot on Twitter (@TheCinemaSpot) and Instagram (@thecinemaspot_).
If you loved Borat and other projects featuring Sacha Baron Cohen’s characters, We have reviewed other documentaries released this year that also deal with what is wrong in America: Filthy Rich and Athlete A.
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
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