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DVD BE FOREWARNED: 'BORAT' HAS ARRIVED.


Byline: Rob Lowman

Entertainment Editor

If you're not grossed out at some point by "Borat -- Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," it's time to throw out those empty pizza boxes and invest in a toilet brush.

And if you don't get its brilliance, well ...

Gross-out humor is nothing new, but Sacha Baron Cohen
For the figure skater, see Sasha Cohen.


Sacha Noam Baron Cohen[1] (born 13 October, 1971) is an English comedian, writer and actor most noted for his comic characters Borat (a Kazakh reporter), Ali G (a junglist-hip hop gangsta wannabe
, the British comic who once punked America with his hip-hop "journalist" Ali G., has turned it into an art form. For Borat (the clueless clue·less  
adj.
Lacking understanding or knowledge.


clueless
Adjective

Slang helpless or stupid

Adj. 1.
 Kazakh reporter played by Cohen cohen
 or kohen

(Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male.
), grossness isn't just about taking your poop Poop

A slang term often used to describe people with insider information.

Notes:
Not the most illustrious name.
See also: Insider Information
 in a bag to your hostess for disposal, or wrestling in the nude (and getting in some very ugly positions) with a sweaty obese man. (By the way, just reading about this doesn't do these scenes justice.)

No, in his wrinkled gray suit, with his butchered English, overt bigotry (he portrays an annual Kazakh event called "the running of the Jew") and sexism, Borat takes a road trip through America (ostensibly os·ten·si·ble  
adj.
Represented or appearing as such; ostensive: His ostensible purpose was charity, but his real goal was popularity.
 making a documentary about the U.S. for his country) and discovers (surprise!) some pretty icky things: prejudice, hypocrisy, arrogance and stupidity.

Yeah, lots of people were outraged, feeling they were duped by Cohen's guerilla hit-and-run tactics -- he has them sign waivers before filming. The comedian would show up late to an event or an appointment -- not giving people much chance to check him out -- and lay something outrageous on them.

At a rodeo in Virginia, Borat is cheered when he tells the crowd, "We support your war of terror War of Terror is a pun used in protest or criticism of the United States policy called the War on Terrorism, also known as the War on Terror.[1] References

1.
," and looks forward to the day when "Premier George W. Bush will drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq." He then mangles Mangles is the name of several people and things: People
Mangles is the name of a wealthy English family whose members had amongst other things, interests in the Swan River Colony. Prominent members and interests include:
  • James Mangles http://wanborough.
 the national anthem to boos.

At a gun store in the South, he asks the man behind the counter which is the best gun for killing Jews. Unblinking, the man tells him a 9mm or a 45 will do the job.

As you know, Cohen is no dummy, a Cambridge-educated scholar from a middle-class, devout Jewish family. His Borat is meant to be a buffoon, a slapstick slapstick

Comedy characterized by broad humour, absurd situations, and vigorous, often violent action. It took its name from a paddlelike device, probably introduced by 16th-century commedia dell'arte troupes, that produced a resounding whack when one comic actor used it to
 character too outrageous to be taken seriously -- but people did take him seriously.

At one point, Borat tells feminists that it's a fact in Kazakhstan the brain of a woman is the size of a squirrel's. Another scene has him in the middle of a Pentecostal church rally being saved by Jesus.

While "Borat" may seem chaotic and haphazard, don't be fooled. It's as sharp and cutting as a razor, and, at 89 minutes, tightly edited. (If you haven't been grossed out by then, you are worn out with laughter.)

Nevertheless, the extras include a number of deleted Kazakhstan "Bay Watch" spoof scenes. There are some laughs, but some of the scenes were cut for obvious reasons -- not all that funny -- though watching Borat racing around the beach in a red swimsuit is eye-opening.

'Peter Pan'

Though it was an animated film, Walt Disney had a lot of live-action filming done for his version of J.M. Barrie's 1904 play, "Peter Pan."

Bobby Driscoll, who voiced Pan, was the primary live-action reference for his character, although Peter's graceful flying actions were inspired by dancer Roland Dupree. Pin-up girl Tinker Bell owes her shape to Margaret Kerry (who measured 35-25-36, which explains a lot of young boys' fantasies).

Kathryn Beaumont, the voice for Wendy, also was filmed, acting out scenes pretending to fly. And Hans Conried, who voiced Captain Hook and Mr. Darling, was the live-action model for both.

It's interesting to see how people either love "Peter Pan," which is out in a special "Two-Disc Platinum Edition," or are very cool toward it. Count me among the former -- it may be that Tinker Bell effect. Sure, "Peter Pan" was Disney-fied, even simplified (Never Never Land became Never Land), but it still sparkles today, especially with in this impressive remastered edition.

It has some good songs -- "The Second Star to the Right," "You Can Fly" and "A Pirate's Life" -- and wonderful high jinks.

This version includes audio commentary hosted by Roy Disney, with animators, film historians, critic Leonard Maltin and others talking about the film. There's the 16-minute documentary "You Can Fly: The Making of Peter Pan," introduced by Walt himself, and a number of games for kids. Oh yeah, there are also plenty of promos for other Disney products.

Box sets

The are a couple of box sets out with some decent titles.

"Literary Classics Collection" -- "Madame Bovary," "Captain Horatio Hornblower Noun 1. Captain Horatio Hornblower - a fictional English admiral during the Napoleonic Wars in novels written by C. S. Forester
Horatio Hornblower
," "The Three Musketeers," "The Prisoner of Zenda," "Billy Budd" -- is the better of the two, with all the films having merit.

"The Hemingway Classics Collection" -- "The Sun Also Rises," "A Farewell to Arms," "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," "Under My Skin," "Adventures of a Young Man" -- suffers from the strain of adapting the works of a big, important writer. That explains why there's only been one decent translation of the Nobel Prize Nobel Prize, award given for outstanding achievement in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, peace, or literature. The awards were established by the will of Alfred Nobel, who left a fund to provide annual prizes in the five areas listed above.  winner's work -- "To Have and Have Not To Have and Have Not is a 1937 novel by Ernest Hemingway about Harry Morgan, a fishing boat captain who runs contraband between Cuba and Florida. The novel depicts Harry as an essentially good man who is forced into blackmarket activity by economic forces beyond his control. " -- which Hemingway thought bad and director Howard Hawks all but ignored to turn into classic entertainment.

There are a two goofball goof·ball or goof ball
n.
A barbiturate or tranquilizer in the form of a pill, especially when taken for nonmedical purposes.
 films worth noting. "Night of the Comet" is about two Valley girls who survive the impact of a comet. Most people have been reduced to piles of red dust, leaving behind only the clothes they had on, others have become zombies Zombies

Companies that continue to operate even though they are insolvent. Also known as living dead.

Notes:
It's advisable to avoid investing in zombies at all costs their life expectancies are highly unpredictable.
. The girls, of course, shop. The 1984 film is silly fun.

"The Other Side of Midnight," from the novel by Sidney Sheldon, is one of the so-bad-it's-almost-funny potboilers of all time. The 1977 film stars Marie-France Pisier as an actress who sleeps her way up to international film star status during the 1930s and '40s. All you need to know is that there's a sex scene with a bucket of ice.

'Hawaii Five-0'

"Hawaii Five-0," which premiered in 1968, played for 12 seasons and is remembered fondly by fans.

"Hawaii Five-0: The First Season" is a seven-disc set that includes all 24 episodes as well as the series' movie pilot, "Cocoon." Extras are reminiscences of the show by cast members, including James MacArthur, who played Danny Williams (Dano) and a tribute to star Jack Lord. So, "Book him, Dano."

Rob Lowman (818) 713-3687

robert.lowman@dailynews.com

NEW FILMS

"Borat -- Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" (Fox; $29.99)

"Fast Food Nation" (Fox; $27.98

"Let's Go to Prison Let's Go to Prison is a dark American comedy that was released in theatres November 17, 2006, starring Dax Shepard, Will Arnett and Chi McBride, and directed by Bob Odenkirk.  -- Rated & Unrated Versions" (Universal; $29.98)

"Confetti" (Fox; $27.98)

OLDER FILMS

"Peter Pan -- Two-Disc Platinum Edition" (Disney; $29.99)

"Literary Classics Collection" ("Madame Bovary," "Captain Horatio Hornblower," "The Three Musketeers," "The Prisoner of Zenda," "Billy Budd") (Warner; $59.98 for the set and $14.99 individually)

"The Full Monty -- Fully Exposed Edition" (Fox; $19.98)

"Cinderella Liberty" (Fox; $19.98)

"Night of the Comet" (MGM MGM
 in full Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.

U.S. corporation and film studio. It was formed when the film distributor Marcus Loew, who bought Metro Pictures in 1920, merged it with the Goldwyn production company in 1924 and with Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1925.
; $14.98)

"Private School" (Universal; $14.98)

"Jesse James" (Fox; $14.98)

"Return of Frank James" (Fox; $14.98) "The True Story of Jesse James" (Fox; $14.98)

"The Other Side of Midnight" (Fox; $19.98)

"Manitou Manitou

supreme deity of Algonquin and neighboring tribes. [Am. Indian Religion: Collier’s, X, 91]

See : God
" (Anchor Bay; $14.98)

"Revenge of the Nerds: The Atomic Wedgie wedgie - (Fairchild) A bug. Probably related to wedged.  Collection" (Fox; $29.99)

"Revenge of the Nerds: Panty Raid Edition" (Fox; $19.98)

"The Hemingway Classics Collection" ("The Sun Also Rises," "A Farewell to Arms," "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," "Under My Skin," "Adventures of a Young Man") (Fox; $69.9)

"Audrey Hepburn Collection" ("Breakfast at Tiffany's," "Roman Holiday," "Sabrina") (Paramount; $24.99)

TELEVISION

"Northern Exposure -- The Complete Sixth Season" (Universal; $59.98)

"Stargate Atlantis -- The Complete Second Season" (MGM; $49.98)

"South Park -- The Complete Ninth Season" (Paramount; $49.98)

"Hawaii Five-0 -- The Complete First Season" (Paramount; $49.98)

"Moonlighting -- Season Five -- The Final Season" (Lionsgate; $29.98)

"Nova: Percy Julian -- Forgotten Genius" (WGBH; $19.95)

"Dracula -- Masterpiece Theatre" (WGBH; $19.95)

"Saturday Night Live This article is about the American television series. For the show related to Big Brother (UK), see Saturday Night Live (UK).

Saturday Night Live (SNL
: Best of Steve Martin" (Lionsgate; $9.98)

"Walkout" (HBO Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO)
A form of oxygen therapy in which the patient breathes oxygen in a pressurized chamber.

Mentioned in: Ozone Therapy
; $26.98)

"Doctor Who -- The Sontaran Experiment (1975)" (BBC BBC
 in full British Broadcasting Corp.

Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927.
 Warner; $14.98)

"Doctor Who -- The Invasion" (1968) ($34.98

"Sabrina, The Teenage Witch -- The Complete First Season" (Paramount; $38.99)

FAMILY/KIDS

"Peter Pan -- Two-Disc Platinum Edition" (Disney; $29.99)

"Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (sometimes called Foster's for short, and abbreviated as "FHIF"/"FHFIF") is an Emmy Award-Winning American animated television series created and produced at Cartoon Network Studios by animator Craig McCracken, who also created  -- The Complete Season 1" (Turner; $19.98)

"VeggieTales -- Moe & the Big Exit" (Big Idea; $14.95)

"Full Metal Panic! Second Raid -- Tactical Ops 03" (Funimation; $29.98)

"Racing to the Rainbow -- The Wiggles wiggles - [scientific computation] In solving partial differential equations by finite difference and similar methods, wiggles are sawtooth (up-down-up-down) oscillations at the shortest wavelength representable on the grid. " (Lyons; $19.98)

"Strawberry Shortcake" (Allumination; $14.98)

"The Electric Company's Greatest Hits & Bits" (Shout; $19.98)

IN CONCERT

"Zach Galifianakis -- Live at the Purple Onion" (Shout; $14.98)

"That One Night -- Live in Buenos Aires, Megadeth" (Image; $19.99)

"Last Man Standing -- Jerry Lee Lewis Noun 1. Jerry Lee Lewis - United States rock star singer and pianist (born in 1935)
Lewis
" (Artists First; $19.98)

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo:

Sacha Baron Cohen brings his outrageous antics to the screen as a Kazakh journalist in "Borat -- Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," a film in which there are no sacred cows.
COPYRIGHT 2007 Daily News
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2007, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Publication:Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
Date:Mar 6, 2007
Words:1470
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