Penny V reviews Brüno in all its satirical and outrageous glory. This review contains spoilers.*
I remember watching Ali G Indahouse a few years back and wondering what the hell it was that I was subjecting my brain cells to. I realised, after a few minutes in that you just go with the flow, turn off your capacity for all sorts of rationality and you’ll achieve quite a few giggles.
I also then found out that he was the least outlandish character out of Sacha Baron Cohen’s bag of tricks. Never having watched any of his television shows or character bits before, each film was a shock of the extent he would go for a joke.
It is a rather impressive feat and makes him quite an exceptional actor but it still remains that some jokes should just never, ever see the light of day.
I’m still unsure of which particular movies was worse or in any case more humorous. We move from Borat with a box full of faeces to Brüno with his schlong windmilling in public, but that’s a small spoiler right there, which I truly don’t want to elaborate on.
So let me formally introduce you to Brüno, an utterly flamboyant gay Austrian fashion-presenter with a quest to be as famous as any Hollywood star. He presents an in-your face satire on America’s homophobia, Hollywood and its love for adopting foreign babies, as well as the love for fame and fortune.
My partner was the one who dragged me along to watch this and half the time I was screwing up my eyes in second-hand embarrassment. Brüno’s gags are outrageous, over-the-top and crude. Believe me, I tried very hard to see the humour in seeing his preferred sexual toys and tricks, as well as his supposed ideas of peace talks between the Israeli’s and Palestinians. I admit, that I did manage to laugh at a few scenes and understood his satirical points but the provocative nature of his ‘political incorrectness’ made it unbearable.
Working within his usual scheme of interviewing and interacting with people not in-the-know of the joke, he lands himself on a Dallas talk show, prepositions a congressman and gets parents to admit that they would allow their babies to be crucified or engage in an orgy for fame and fortune.
Ever dedicated to his gags and sticking with them till the very end, through a storm of heckling and preconceived notions of prejudice; is the reason why I’m so uncomfortable due to the fact that I’m constrained by my own PC-riddled mind? Am I the one who still has some sort of prejudice that I can’t seem to get over because it’s not compartmentalised into something more likeable? That is something to think about.
Though I think it’s just the shock-value of Brüno treating humans like furniture, his deviant thought process and the fact that his penis was doing an imitation of a pin-wheel.
Greatings, Not sure that this is true:), but thanks for a post.