'Bruno' review
Sacha Baron Cohen again does anything for a laugh—even if it means missing the point
Posted July 9, 2009
Metromix
While trying to become an American celebrity, faux Austrian TV personality Brüno (Sacha Baron Cohen) flaunts his homosexuality in the most ostentatious ways possible, from enduring on-camera anal bleaching to piloting a TV show featuring a flopping, talking penis. (Note: This is the first Metromix review to include the terms “anal bleaching” and “flopping penis.”) The gags also involve Brüno meeting with a “gay converter” in Alabama, trading an iPod for an African baby, trying to bring peace to the Middle East and pointlessly chasing a group that declares, “God Hates Fags.”
The buzz: Cohen’s character from “Da Ali G Show” has had his share of recent headlines, between introducing his crotch to Eminem at the MTV Movie Awards and cutting a scene with LaToya Jackson out of "Brüno" in the wake of Michael Jackson’s death. As the film uses a blend of documentary and scripted sketches to skewer gay stereotypes, the question is if "Brüno" can possibly seem as fresh, daring and real after 2006’s hysterical “Borat,” which made Cohen a more widely recognizable star.
The verdict: A funny, fearlessly absurd comedy but a shaky satire, “Brüno” often gets off-topic, confusing the message—those prejudiced against gays see all homosexual behavior as this overt—with subjects muddled by race, religion and celebrity-obsessed culture. The film’s bravery is also dulled by choosing such easy targets and by skepticism over its authenticity (a clearly scripted early scene with Paula Abdul casts doubt over much that follows). Where Borat’s naiveté cleverly exposed ignorance, the imposing “Brüno” becomes redundant and obvious in showing just how alarmed people are by deliberately confrontational behavior. You don’t have to be as anti-gay as the Arkansas mixed martial arts fans onscreen to think two guys making out in the ring seems out of place, and not much of a step forward toward tolerance.
Did you know? Brüno informs a terrorist leader in Lebanon that he thinks Osama Bin Laden looks like a “dirty wizard” or a “homeless Santa.” At last, someone’s initiating a conversation that can put an end to all this international negativity.
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