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A full frontal (excuse the pun) cinematic assault on homophobia and celebrity culture, Brüno gives Sacha Baron Cohen the opportunity to bring another of his misfit characters to the big screen in this follow-up to the hugely successful Borat. After achieving worldwide notoriety with Borat, it'd seem impossible for Cohen to anonymously deceive people with his provocative candid-camera antics once again. But lo and behold - the devilish actor has pulled it off thanks to a fresh new guise, and has found a new group of unsuspecting people to exploit for laughs. Cohen, who seems to have a pathological hate for America, has again proved that the US is indeed home to the dumbest, most screwed-up people on the planet. Brüno is a worthy successor to Borat - it employs a similar tactic of exploiting the idiocy, ignorance, and prejudice present in American society as a form of satire and social commentary while offering scripted comedy and mockumentary-style gags. But that's its only real weaknesses - Borat was so fresh and bizarrely unprecedented, while Brüno feels like more of the same.
As expected, plot is at a minimum as this is just a loosely connected chain of skits that allow the filmmakers to pierce something with their satirical knife (and turn the blade in the wound). The title character, Brüno (Cohen), is a homosexual Austrian fashion reporter whose television show (Funkyzeit) has established him as an icon in fashion circles. But a catastrophic incident at a fashion show leads to Brüno becoming fired, which ruins his reputation. Accompanied only by devoted assistant Lutz (Hammaresten), Brüno travels to America with plans to become "the biggest Austrian superstar since Hitler." The exiled fashionista apes the headline-grabbing antics of stars such as Angelina Jolie and Madonna in his single-minded pursuit for fame.
Brüno doesn't contain a rigid structure - it merely establishes a sense of purpose for our Austrian hero to go fourth and spread his unique brand of cheer. Using the central character's homosexuality as the bayonet on the film's rifle of satire, Brüno is more concerned with provoking violent responses through offensive material than trying to stitch together a coherent feature film. The film eventually sheds all dramatic pretences in order to run free in the fields of Cohen's disconcerting imagination, placing the character in interesting situations of conflict to capture the priceless reactions of unwitting victims. Brüno doesn't just cross the line...it crosses the line, laughs at the line, makes a new line, crosses that line, and then rapes the new line. If the nude wrestling sequence in Borat was too much for you...well, you ain't seen nothing yet.
While the laughs aren't as constant as one would anticipate, Brüno does deliver comedy in spades (as long as you're not easily offended). The feature fails to break new ground for Cohen and his comic impulses, but it certainly gives him welcome room to play. Borat was hardly restrained or in good taste when it came to sexual gags, but the seriously questionable taste of Brüno makes its predecessor seem like a morality play in comparison. Brüno was initially slapped with an NC-17 rating by the MPAA before Cohen removed several minutes in order to acquire an R rating for its theatrical release. But what remains is still incredibly hardcore and disgustingly explicit. Its rating is deserved!
When it comes to the unscripted skits, Sacha Baron Cohen has two primary targets - homophobia and celebrity culture - and he ain't shy about attacking either of them. The film is ripe with excessive homosexual stereotypes, with much of the humour derived from the clueless bystanders' reactions to the flamboyant Brüno.
The novelty factor of Brüno is lessened because the style is no longer fresh. It doesn't help that the film rehashes the basic plot of Borat: a foreign TV personality and his loyal sidekick depart from their homeland and embark upon a quest, along the way exposing the prejudices of the unsuspecting people they encounter. Unfortunately, too, Brüno feels far more manufactured. While the roughness around the edges of the video and audio make everything seem real, it's difficult to subdue the suspicion that some of the victims were primed to perform. In the end, Brüno isn't funny enough either; the juicy belly laughs are few and far between. Cohen usually forces gags instead of allowing the humour to emerge organically.
Sacha Baron Cohen's performance as the homosexual Austrian is expectedly terrific. Like Borat, the man hides behind an unrecognisable screen persona and immerses himself into the role 100%. Cohen is clearly prepared to do an array of preposterous things for the sake of amusing footage. The entire film is just a game of chicken that's played to see how far Sacha Baron Cohen will go to annoy people and get laughs. If the man has limits, none are in evidence. Cohen may have many things - a wife, money, fame and success - but shame is a virtue he doesn't possess.
Look out for cameos from countless celebrities as well, including Harrison Ford (the funniest ten seconds of the movie), Paula Abdul and Ron Paul. During the closing credits, Brüno also records a charity song with such celebrities as Bono, Elton John, Snoop Dog and Sting.
In the long run, Brüno achieves its goal - it provides a social commentary using guerrilla tactics, and it's quite funny. It's narratively structured exactly like its predecessor and it treads similar satirical ground, but it's still enjoyable. Sacha Baron Cohen may be a one trick pony, but he knows how to give an audience (*ahem*) a good ride. Just like Borat, some will praise this film a masterpiece of its genre while others will demonise it as unfunny, offensive pornographic excess. If you're part of the latter camp, I suggest you lighten up.
6.9/10
