Borat 2 Review: A Genius Cohen Reprisal not for the Faint Hearted!

After a gap of 14 years, Amazon Prime Video brings us, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (also known as Borat Subsequent Moviefilm or Borat 2) which follows the journey of Kazakhstan’s Top Journalist back to the USA. This time around Borat is tasked with presenting the Vice President of the United States a special gift on behalf of the Kazakhstan Government and bring glory to his nation.

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Borat 2 opens with the aftermath of the protagonist’s first trip to the USA, his punitive sentence, and a politically (in)correct monologue that sets the tone of what is to follow. However, this time Borat is not alone in his journey to redeem his homeland’s lost glory; joining him is his 15-year old daughter, Tutar, and of course, a camera crew. Also, Borat isn’t an unknown foreign journalist but a famous personality with many people chasing him for an autograph and with a personal line of Halloween costumes.

The reason for Borat’s second trip to the glorious USA is to present an offering to someone “close to the throne” and make Kazakhstan an ally of the United States. But this simple job takes a hilarious turn when Tutar is chosen as the “special gift” to be presented to VP Mike Pence and further Rudy Giuliani.

What makes Borat 2 interesting is the unfiltered nature of comments made by people in the documentary. The individuals who are a part of this “movie-film” do not shy away from putting their beliefs and values across, no matter how bigoted they maybe, even though the cameras are rolling. With old men putting a price on a young girl to a huge group of people flouting conspiracy theories as God’s Truth, one may feel that America and its new ideology is more polarised than ever.

The screenplay in the first half of this 96-minute movie is slow which makes the audience’s attention wander. But, towards the end of the movie, the pace picks up and grips your attention towards the screen. Furthermore, the climax will divide you; you either love it due to its ironical nature or completely detest it, taking into account the current scenarios.

Some dialogues will seem repetitive; many jokes and gags fall flat and the freshness that one might expect from the second edition, is not quite there. However, the movie has moments where it does astonish you and make you laugh out loud. Director Jason Woliner tries to capture the essence of the previous movie but doesn’t quite hit the nail on its head.

Sacha Baron Cohen reprises his iconic role Borat Sagdiyev, the infamous journalist who brought nothing but shame to his home country. Borat seems like a second skin to Cohen as the character comes very naturally to him making it difficult to distinguish one from another. The ease with which Cohen delivers his dialogues makes his portrayal seamless.

Though fans of the original movie will miss Azamat’s character in this edition, Maria Bakalova’s portrayal of Tutar (Borat’ teenage daughter) is applause-worthy. Her transformation from a naïve girl who believed everything her father said to this young woman charged with feminist ideology, opens a new avenue of issues to be explored. The progression of Cohen and Bakalova’s relationship, in the movie, will weirdly warm your heart but what will surprise you is Borat’s rendezvous with feminism.

The movie covers a plethora of people in its run time from sugar babies to Holocaust survivors, but the character that stays with you is Professional Babysitter Jeanise Jones. It is Jones who opens Tutar’s eyes to a world where anything is possible, even if you are a woman, unlike Kazakhstan’s infamous manual.

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It was unfortunate that the audience does not get a chance to see POTUS Donald Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr. and Borat’s American wife Luenell in this edition as their scenes were cut from the movie’s final edit. We felt that the audience definitely needed to see Borat’s take on this presidency and all controversies surrounding it.

The shift in tone for this edition may also be due to an astronomical change in what America was fourteen years ago and what it is today. However, if you are a fan of Cohen or the Borat franchise, this movie is a much watch. But be warned that this satirical storm is not for the faint-hearted as it will make you uncomfortable and squirm, so better stay put if you are not familiar with the franchise.

Rating – 3.5/5 | Grade – B+

Images via Amazon Prime Video
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