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Stereotypes are so last year: Does 'Bruno' have the look of a hit comedy or rampant homophobia?
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"Borat" may be so 2006, but controversy never goes out of style. With Sacha Baron Cohen’s most outrageous effort yet with “Bruno,” now playing nationwide, will the film ignite a debate on whether the actor-satirist has finally gone too far?
Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest line of confrontational comedy as “Bruno” has finally made its way into the public’s eye. No stranger to controversy, Baron Cohen proudly wears his agenda of being offensive like an exquisitely constructed piece of haute couture. But is his joke as a stereotypical gay Austrian fashionista journalist clashing with Middle America, the Middle East, the fashion industry, the racial divide and everything else in between really just an insensitive ploy for cheap laughs?
Universal, which is releasing "Bruno," has courted the favor of the GLBT community and reaction has been rather interesting. Rashad Robinson, who is senior director of media programs for the Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, has been quoted as saying "It is really hard to judge this movie as just a single movie. It is 90 minutes of individual sketches."
While the electronic marketing campaign of “Bruno” makes a point to focus on some the film’s most politically charged moments, its bid for “watercooler chatter” may inevitability center on the stereotypes in terms of an audience’s recall. It is a phenomenon, Robinson thinks, that will only succeed in reinforcing negative popular images of homosexuality.
"It will be shown in places where gay people have incredible challenges,” Robinson added, “in places where gay people have absolutely no protections.”
Universal offered its own statement defending the film as using “provocative comedy to powerfully shed light on the absurdity of many kinds of intolerance and ignorance, including homophobia” and that “Bruno” “forces both the people Bruno meets and the audience itself to challenge their own stereotypes, preconceptions and discomforts."
Early reviews for “Bruno” have been strong. However, while critics have praised Baron Cohen’s incredible commitment to the Bruno character in some very awkward situations, others have noted the film does not quite hit its comedic targets as well as “Borat.” Ultimately, the deciding factor will be an eager audience primed to see how “Bruno’s” mirror can provide a shocking image of reality in the name of entertainment.
Now, it’s your turn to take over the catwalk, Examiner readers. Is “Bruno” the hottest thing you’ve seen this season? Or is it just plain late? Sound off!
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