In 2006 Sacha Baron Cohen took his character Borat to the USA and had him make a documentary. His mission was simple: study the States so he could report back ways to improve his home country of Kazakhstan, or be “execute”. Brüno is his follow-up, spiritual heir, and near remake.
Our title character (Cohen) is a homosexual, Austrian, fashion guru. For unmentioned reasons, a film crew is following him 24/7. Brüno hosts a top fashion TV show in his native country, but due to his behavior, he is blacklisted. Having lost his fame in Austria, Brüno travels to Los Angeles in a bid to make himself the largest star in the world.
Just as with Borat, the director of Brüno is Larry Charles. Again, the production values exceed those of the material we are looking to spoof. Borat’s financial position made the shakiness, and grain in some of his inserts, believable. With Brüno the production value has been ramped up. Transitions are cutting edge, the score is dynamic, and the shot composition is eerily choreographed for something marketed as a Candid Camera send-off.
Part of the trouble with Brüno, is that the premise is starkly thin and lacking in credibility. Whereas there was a set-up for Borat to make his movie, Brüno begs the audience to pretend that the camera doesn’t have an operator. One gag places Brüno in a compromising position as he’s chained in bed with his assistant. Somehow, he calls upon hotel staff to free him. This completely overlooks the fact that there is a cameraman in the room who is fully capable of undoing the chains. It’s a mockumentary Sasha. If your characters acknowledge the cameras, and the “victims” can see them, your audience isn’t going to buy the gag. In addition to this, many of the gags feel staged to the effect that ringers are obviously in place with roles designed to get Brüno to perform set actions; be it a crazed sadist or a stunt driver.
This film makes no effort to tread new creative ground. Just like the film that precedes it, it’s about an outcast learning about the United States. Brüno even has an assistant traveling with him, just like Borat. There is also a central demographic being harassed by the film’s jokes; again, much like Borat. In the first film, there is an ungoing joke targeting Jews. Here, the entire film focuses on homosexuals. Occasionally there is a reveal that makes his interviewees appear in the wrong, but it’s the relentless homosexual drive of Brüno that makes audiences of all kinds cringe. Therefore Cohen’s attempt to turn the tables on the backward and the clueless misses the target.
With a running time a little over an hour and ten minutes, Brüno seems unfinished. I realize that in the wake of Michael Jackson’s death, a scene was removed. A clip in the TV spot that shows him at Sears, was also omitted. What’s in the film, at times, feels lethargic and nearly pointless. One circumstance that comes to mind with where Brüno finds himself at a swingers party. It’s so grievously uncomfortable that the time it encompasses feels tripled.
Relying far too much on total gross-out “humor”, Brüno is beyond the bounds of public decency. Sure, there are some laughs to be had. I found myself laughing at the verbal jokes that Cohen was quick enough to unleash on his co-stars amid his pranks. These moments were clever, subtle, and hilarious; but without question easily washed over by utter vulgarity and a pointless plot. If Borat was your guilty pleasure, maybe this retread fits you. **½
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