Benign Tyranny. Sacha Baron Cohen's Dictator is a kinder, gentler despot

摘要

For a Decade,Sacha Baron Cohen reveled in his role as the shockmeister of comedy. The characters he hatched on British TV-belligerent "voice of da yoof” Ali G, Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev and gay Austrian fashionista Brueno-turned interviews into outrage, sandbagging politicians with rudely pertinent questions and ordinary folks with his confrontational antics. From these characters came three films: Ali G Indahouse (2002) and the prime mocku-mentaries Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) and Bruno (2009). Borat was a worldwide hit, Bruno not so much, indicating that audiences may have been feeling some kamikaze-comedy fatigue.