connoisseur series500 Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 Who comes off looking worst here--liberal white intellectuals, black wannabees, or hip hop culture? Seems they all get slimed, but it's funny as Hell! Quote
bertrand Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 I, however, continue to utterly fail to find him the least bit funny. I lump him in with Wanda Sykes. Bertrand. Quote
Alexander Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 He's brilliant. "Bruno" looks as thought it's going to be just a much fun as "Borat." Quote
Royal Oak Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 Ali G was something of a revelation here in the UK about 10 years ago, when he was a sketch on a late-night comedy show. After a while, his potential victims had worked him out, and by the time he got his spoof talk show, everyone knew the joke. I'm not much of a fan of Sacha Baron-Cohen. To be fair, he appears nowhere near as smug as the utterly charmless Ricky Gervais, who also got his break on the same show. IMO, of course. Quote
Alexander Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 Ali G was something of a revelation here in the UK about 10 years ago, when he was a sketch on a late-night comedy show. After a while, his potential victims had worked him out, and by the time he got his spoof talk show, everyone knew the joke. I'm not much of a fan of Sacha Baron-Cohen. To be fair, he appears nowhere near as smug as the utterly charmless Ricky Gervais, who also got his break on the same show. IMO, of course. Funny. I'm a big fan of Gervais as well. Maybe it's because we get smaller doses of the two of them here in the US... Quote
Royal Oak Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 Ali G was something of a revelation here in the UK about 10 years ago, when he was a sketch on a late-night comedy show. After a while, his potential victims had worked him out, and by the time he got his spoof talk show, everyone knew the joke. I'm not much of a fan of Sacha Baron-Cohen. To be fair, he appears nowhere near as smug as the utterly charmless Ricky Gervais, who also got his break on the same show. IMO, of course. Funny. I'm a big fan of Gervais as well. Maybe it's because we get smaller doses of the two of them here in the US... Possibly. Don't get me wrong - I loved "The Office" as much as anyone when it came out. He quickly became omnipresent (BBC specials, publishing deals for books of his drawings, weak stand-up shows on DVD) and he obviously believes the hype. Just seeing or hearing him now makes me cringe. I think his American equivalent would be Will Ferrell - I can't think of a more repellent screen prescence. Sorry for getting off -topic. Quote
Jazzmoose Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 I, however, continue to utterly fail to find him the least bit funny. I lump him in with Wanda Sykes. Bertrand. Thanks for the tip; I'll avoid Wanda Sykes... Quote
jazzbo Posted June 20, 2009 Report Posted June 20, 2009 I actually have been known to chuckle at Syke's humor. Cohen's really doesn't do much for me. Quote
BFrank Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Wanda was good on Curb Your Enthusiasm, but I haven't seen anything else of hers. She wasn't funny at the White House Correspondents dinner. As for SB Cohen, I'm with Bertrand - I fail to find him the least bit funny. Quote
papsrus Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Wanda was good on Curb Your Enthusiasm, but I haven't seen anything else of hers. She wasn't funny at the White House Correspondents dinner. As for SB Cohen, I'm with Bertrand - I fail to find him the least bit funny. Yeah, Sykes was a good foil for Larry on "Curb." Saw her on HBO doing stand-up and she wasn't nearly as funny delivering one-liners. Kinda like Michel Richards' character on "Seinfeld." Very funny. But his stand-up act turned out to be a disaster for him. As for Sascha Baron Cohen ... meh. The difference for me is that the characters on "Curb" and "Seinfeld" were/are all about pointing out their own absurd character flaws and neuroses, and by extension the absurdities and neuroses in us all. Their fears or mistrust of other people could all basically be traced back to there own shortcomings. Without having watched his schtick all that closely, I get the impression Cohen is all about mocking not his own flaws (and by extension, the flaws in all of us), but rather, he picks out easy targets from a rather lofty perch and applies the hammer-to-the-ant method to make the obvious point that, "Hey, look at these assholes!" Maybe I misread him, but that gets old pretty fast. IMHO Quote
JSngry Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Without having watched his schtick all that closely, I get the impression Cohen is all about mocking not his own flaws (and by extension, the flaws in all of us), but rather, he picks out easy targets from a rather lofty perch and applies the hammer-to-the-ant method to make the obvious point that, "Hey, look at these assholes!" Maybe I misread him, but that gets old pretty fast. That's the impression I have too, although like you I've not watched all that much. Great comedy is quite often cruel, but it shouldn't be mean. Quote
Alexander Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Without having watched his schtick all that closely, I get the impression Cohen is all about mocking not his own flaws (and by extension, the flaws in all of us), but rather, he picks out easy targets from a rather lofty perch and applies the hammer-to-the-ant method to make the obvious point that, "Hey, look at these assholes!" Maybe I misread him, but that gets old pretty fast. That's the impression I have too, although like you I've not watched all that much. Great comedy is quite often cruel, but it shouldn't be mean. Maybe it's because I do improvisational comedy, but I can't help but admire Cohen's ability to stay in character and improvise while dealing with increasingly hostile people who aren't in on the joke. It can be hard enough to perform with someone who consistently blocks your offers when they are also performing. What Cohen does takes that to another level of difficulty entirely. Imagine a musician who walks into any club in town, uninvited and unannounced, and just gets up on the stand (regardless of the type of music being played) and just starts jamming. Not only would he have the difficulty of trying to improvise blind, but he'd also have to deal with the hostility of the people who want him to get off the stage. That's what Cohen does. There's an improv group called "Improv Everywhere" that does something similar. They do these big public improv stunts (like getting dozens of people to ride the subway in NYC pantsless in the middle of winter) and filming the reactions of the bystanders. You might think it mean or childish. I think it's brave and brilliant. Quote
JSngry Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 I dunno...it's one thing to share in the misery of others for a laugh...it's another thing to create it... A fine line (and a slippery slope), fully stipulated. Quote
jazzbo Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Y'know Alexander, Ali G may be brilliant, and brave. But I don't think he's funny! I realize others do. Quote
papsrus Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 There's an improv group called "Improv Everywhere" that does something similar. They do these big public improv stunts (like getting dozens of people to ride the subway in NYC pantsless in the middle of winter) and filming the reactions of the bystanders. You might think it mean or childish. I think it's brave and brilliant. Really? Man, that seems like one step removed from mooning. I guess it's all subjective, but over-the-top, in-your-face "comedy" kind of fails with me precisely because it's over the top. That Stern flunky who went on Joe Buck's HBO gig last week (video is all over the net) wasn't funny. His only comedic talent was to be as much of an asshole as he could in order to embarrass Buck as much as possible. Not really that funny. More like a car wreck. You gotta look, but you kind of squirm as you go by. IMO Quote
Jazzmoose Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Maybe it's because I do improvisational comedy, but I can't help but admire Cohen's ability to stay in character and improvise while dealing with increasingly hostile people who aren't in on the joke. Hey, I admire his talent; I'm just not sure I enjoy watching someone being a really, really good asshole. Quote
seeline Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 (edited) I dunno...it's one thing to share in the misery of others for a laugh...it's another thing to create it... Yep. Also, what papsrus said, about him simply mocking other people, rather than making fun of himself first. I fail to see how his stunts do anything to shock people into a new level of awareness of, say, anti-semitism ("Throw the Jew Down the Well") and more. I think he's just exploiting people. and he's clearly capable of doing something more intelligent, which is what really irks me... Edited June 21, 2009 by seeline Quote
sheldonm Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 I actually have been known to chuckle at Syke's humor. Cohen's really doesn't do much for me. I'm with Lon on both points. m~ Quote
JSngry Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Maybe it's because I do improvisational comedy, but I can't help but admire Cohen's ability to stay in character and improvise while dealing with increasingly hostile people who aren't in on the joke. Hey, I admire his talent; I'm just not sure I enjoy watching someone being a really, really good asshole. Much the same thing was said of Allen Funt & Candid Camera back in the day, but nobody ever said that Funt & Co. didn't "show some love" once the cat was out of the bag...or that they failed to let people in on the joke before things got really ugly. Quote
seeline Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 True. I feel like Baron Cohen takes advantage of peoples' goodwill, for the most part. Quote
JSngry Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 Well, it's not like they're all perfectly nice people who needed convincing to become assholes, but...last time I looked, simply being an asshole still constitutional... Well, it's not like they're all perfectly nice people who needed convincing to become assholes, but...last time I looked, simply being an asshole still constitutional... Quote
kenny weir Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 You're all absolutely correct - this dude doing Borat is cruel, mean, lazy, opportunistic, politically incorrect and (probably) purple. But - oh geez, the guilt, the shame, I'm so sorry - some of the stuff in that Borat movie was some of the funniest shit I've ever seen. Even if it made me cringe at the same time. So shoot me already. Quote
kenny weir Posted June 21, 2009 Report Posted June 21, 2009 You're all absolutely correct - this dude doing Borat is cruel, mean, lazy, opportunistic, politically incorrect and (probably) purple. But - oh geez, the guilt, the shame, I'm so sorry - some of the stuff in that Borat movie was some of the funniest shit I've ever seen. Even if it made me cringe at the same time. So shoot me already. Quote
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