h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

This film will break all box-office records. It's totally absurd.
The hero is a Khasakstani John Cleese who goes on a kind Jack Kerouac rampage through the States in an old ice-cream van with a grizzly bear in the back in the hope of seducing a Baywatch silicon-chested-blonde. It's a sideways look at American 'culture' with some hilarious good old-fashioned Jew-baiting, naked wrestling, gay rights, gospel, Bush bashing, et al thrown in for good measure. Totally disrespectful. You'll be laughing your socks off.

I'm sure it's very funny. Much of the of the media debate has centred around how much we're 'allowed' to laugh at the unacceptable.

However...may I play Devil's Avocado for a moment. The Alf Garnett Syndrome is well known. Warren Mitchell withdrew from playing the character for several years because he stopped trusting in the audience's intelligence. He felt that the majority were not seeing the absurd irony, but were agreeing with Alf's bigotry.

Now I don't think that's *quite* what Borat might be guilty of (I say 'might' - it's more of a question). These days, it is postulated that a media-savvy audience is able to laugh, in a a post-modern, ironic way at the politcally uncorrect. Nevertheless, it does allow the racist, homophobic, mysogynist views to enter the mainstream. Are we sure that the inevitable dialogue-quoters do not actually agree with tghe sentiments they will be expressing?

And isn't it also a good excuse to laugh at a funny foreigner?

(is that the word?) I *would* like to see the film. On past record, I'm sure it will be a riot. I'll wait for the DVD, though. I *did* manage a rare cinema outing and plumped for The Departed. Stunning! Quite superb. As usual for a Scorsese film, there are many outstanding ensemble performances. But Lenny DiC *must* get the Academy, if only for one particular piece of body language lasting about half a second.

Therein lies another issue of political correctness. My wife complains about 'All these violent films you like.' I *don't* seek out gore-fests and shoot-em-ups...but I do hold that the way that someone like Scorsese uses violence is a thing of savage beauty.

I heard a snatch of a recording on the radio this morning by Bonobo(?), I think that's what the DJ said, - it sounded like a pretty cool arrangement of Mac the Knife anyway.

Yes, I remember Alf Garnett, Bernard Manning, Les Dawson etc. I never felt offended by them. Mother-in-laws often laughed loudest at themselves as portrayed by Les at the summer seaside shows. Welshmen loved Max Boyce even when he made jokes about leeks.
My favourite television comedy was 'One Foot in the Grave' - I think because it extracted the urine out of everybody. And that's why I enjoy Borat - nobody is safe from him. I believe he's planning to do one about Adolf Hitler and the boys in the brown stuff next. Should be a riot.
My own feeling is that humour is a great safety-valve apart from being darned good fun and healthy too. If we have to go down the road where we can't laugh at ourselves - well, it will be terrible. As the doc says, Laughter is the best medicine.
I may go and see The Life of Emil Zola later today - don't suppose there will be many laughs in that.
Cheers, LL

I'd heard thet his next film was to feature his Austrian 'Bruno' character, so that fits.

I have a German friend who bears a striking facial resemblance to Bruno.

Armando Iannucci:

"...over questions of taste and taboo in comedy, my instinct is always first to ask: is it funny? That's why I probably would have had more sympathy with the Christian protest groups if Jerry Springer: The Opera had been less amusing, and would have had more sympathy with the Danish cartoonists if their efforts in depicting Muhammad had been more witty. "

(extract from http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1924846,00.html)