#danmazer

The sequels to Home Alone will seem like evolutionary breakthroughs compared to Home Sweet Home Alone. It captures none of what made the film an instant favorite for kids. With embarrassing attempts at self-deprecating humor will have adults groaning and a lack of laughs, no one could call this a holiday classic… though it did lead me to a slight “eureka” moment.

In the process of selling the home they can no longer afford, Jeff and Pam McKenzie (Rob Delaney and Ellie Kemper) suddenly discover they own a grotesque doll worth hundreds of thousands. Unfortunately, it’s gone missing. Believing that Max Mercer (Archie Yates) has stolen it, the parents decide to break into his home to get it back. After all, the Mercer family have all left for a Christmas vacation in Tokyo. There’s no way they’d make the mistake of leaving a 12-year-old home alone…

Everyone remembers the slapstick comedy in 1990’s Home Alone. If you watch it again, you’ll see that the paint buckets on strings, the icy steps, and other makeshift anti-burglary devices only come at the end of the picture. What the film is about first and foremost is growing up. Kevin McCallister is a scared little eight-year-old who learns to overcome his fear of the furnace in the basement and become responsible enough to take care of a household all by himself. In the process, he learns the importance of family. Home Sweet Home Alone skips all of that.

The choice to swap the burglars for people who want what's theirs returned is an immediate misstep. While it makes this a much less scary/threatening scenario for the kiddies, it also makes the injuries suffered unfunny. A simple conversation would've resolved this whole thing. Also, the dimwitted adults seem unsuited to care for their kids…

Many modern-day adjustments make the scenario more relevant and/or plausible. All but one (which has to do with cellphones replacing landlines) are sure to make the picture feel dated immediately. The worst of it concerns every single web search being blocked. It doesn’t make any sense but if Max had the internet, this crazy setup would be over immediately. The talking home assistant gags fare better than the lame winks towards the audience, however. There’s a fun cameo by a Home Alone cast member but director Dan Mazer’s choice to tell us how annoying it is to have beloved classics remade will only prompt you to yell “follow your advice!” at the screen. It’s a shocker to see a name associated with Borat, its sequel, and the Ali G character fumble comedy this badly.

I grew up with Home Alone and was shocked when I saw its 66% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Seeing Home Sweet Home Alone as an adult with no nostalgia towards the new release, I had an epiphany. I now understand how an adult in 1990 could’ve sat down with the John Hughes-written picture and gone “What am I looking at?” Could this mean that this sequel made decades later become a family favorite years down the line? Not a chance. No one would ever recommend this film over the original or even its sequel any time of year. (December 20, 2021)

Every sequel faces an uphill struggle. That goes double for comedies and it's even harder for a film like Borat Subsequent Moviefilm. The first’s success depended so much on surprise. Amazingly, he manages to do it again. Borat 2 may not have the impact its predecessor did but in certain ways, it could be considered even more audacious than the 2006 film.

Sentenced to a lifetime of hard labor for embarrassing Kazakhstan, Borat Sagdiyev (Sacha Baron Cohen) is allowed to redeem himself - and the nation - by bribing U.S. Vice President Mike Pence. When the prized chimp he was given dies, Borat decides to use his estranged daughter, Tuta (Maria Bakalova). As he readies the fifteen-year-old for marriage, the country becomes embroiled in the COVID-19 Pandemic and 2020 Presidential Election.

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (one of several alternate titles) does not have a scene whose audacity matches that of the naked brawl inside the packed convention ballroom. Well, that’s debatable. In this follow-up, it’s a prominent figure tied to Donald Trump (which Borat hilariously calls “McDonald Trump” throughout) that gets exposed rather than Cohen. Those who get skewered by this mockumentary get it bad. It should say something that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in brownface emerges almost unscorched compared to the rest of the film's targets. Borat 2 exposes sexism/misogyny, antisemitism, nutcase conspiracy theorists, general racism, and flat-idiocy. By now, we're well aware that many individuals only need a slight push to reveal their true colors but the picture still makes your jaw drop. 

Sometimes, he's just trolling those around him by tricking them into believing outlandish lies, making them perform tedious tasks, etc. It's funny but we're comfortable. When he gets a plastic surgeon to admit he'd perform a "sex attack" on his underage daughter if he had the chance, that's when you laugh out of bewilderment. As disturbing and hilarious as it might be, that's just the tip of the iceberg. Most of the people who admit what they do won’t even see this as a learning experience, they’ll just dig their heels deeper into their own biases and stupidity.

The one aspect of Borat that could’ve been improved upon was the story, and why Subsequent Moviefilm has a much stronger narrative. In fact, it’s one of the strongpoints. Between the pranks and outrage, I didn't expect to see a touching and surprisingly emotional father-daughter story. Maria Bakalova is phenomenal in this breakout role. She keeps up with Baron Cohen in every single way and is just as brave - maybe even more. Her comedic timing, improv skills, and energy make you wonder if it would be so bad for the Borat franchise to trade its titular character and focus on his daughter instead.

Fourteen years later, Borat uncovers a side of America you’d think we would’ve exorcized by now in an eye-opening, hilarious way. It's strong throughout but the ending is the stuff of legends before ending on a terrific final note. Though it might not be as shocking a surprise as the first go, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm still had me yelling “WHAT?!” at the top of my lungs. (October 29, 2020)

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (or simply Borat) is as audacious now as it was in 2006. You can’t believe Sacha Baron Cohen put himself out there - quite literally - the way he did. It’s packed with memorable lines from a character you cannot forget. It even manages to educate you by surreptitiously inserting a couple of smart observations made here and there. They raise eyebrows even more than the comedian’s antics. Sometimes it goes too far but in a picture like this, that’s preferable to not going far enough.

Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev (Sacha Baron Cohen) is tasked by his government to make a documentary about what makes the “US and A” the “Greatest Country in the World”. With the help of producer Azamat Bagatov (Ken Davitian), the clueless, jew-hating, misogynist foreigner does his best to navigate the country.

I'd like to think everyone would realize there's something amiss about this portrayal of Kazakhstan instantly. This mockumentary fills it with children who play with AK-47s, the town rapist is little more than an annoyance, pubic hair is a form of currency, women are kept in cages and scientifically proven to be less intelligent than men, and so on. Then again, most people have probably never even heard of Kazakhstan, which is why Cohen gets away with everything he says so matter-of-factly. “Against animal cruelty?!” might be one of my favorite lines from the film.

Borat is convincing as he interacts with people because there's nothing the actor won’t do. Some of it you might even believe from a foreigner unaccustomed to our customs. He slowly leads to his outrageous comments or slips them in so quickly that people are either too taken aback to confront him about it or don’t react at all. His demeanor makes everyone let their guards down. He'll throw in a jingoistic remark. Did it spark outrage? No? Better go a little further. All the non-actors either show superhuman patience, which makes their bamboozled reactions hilarious, or they incriminate and embarrass themselves so thoroughly you laugh at their expense. As cringe turns to hilarity, you wonder, "Did no one remember they were on camera?"

I first saw Borat in 2006. Its iconic lines have never left my memory. "Very Nice!" indeed. What shocked me this time around was that many of the people I initially categorized as victims of the prankster's filmmaking... kind of deserved what they got. The scenes in the deep south gave me a twisted smile where before - when I didn't understand what was actually being said - I saw innocent bystanders being taken advantage of. Seeing these wretches exposed is a pure delight.

Borat is deceptively intelligent and also works as an outlandish "put it all out there" comedy. It's nasty, vulgar, outrageous, and bold. The fact that it sparked controversy and multiple lawsuits shouldn't be a surprise. While the plot itself is only so-so, the end results make it a must-see comedy. (October 27, 2020)

DIRTY GRANDPA hits theaters this Friday! Download assets and check out the hilarious digital “kids” book Fun With Dick And Jason before January 22nd!

DIRTY GRANDPA hits theaters this Friday!

Download assets and check out the hilarious digital “kids” book Fun With Dick And Jason before January 22nd!

DIRTY GRANDPA

In Theaters January 22, 2016

Jason Kelly [Zac Efron] is one week away from marrying his boss’s uber-controlling daughter, putting him on the fast track for a partnership at the law firm. However, when the straight-laced Jason is…