海角大神

Having used up, at least for now, the improv characters he developed in 鈥�Da Ali G Show," Sacha Baron Cohen in 鈥淭he Dictator鈥� has created a new one: the full-bearded Adm. Gen. Omar Aladeen, tyrant of the North African nation of Wadiya.
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He鈥檚 the guy, you know, who spilled Kim Jong-il鈥檚 鈥渁shes鈥� on Ryan Seacrest at the Academy Awards. (The film is dedicated to the memory of the late Korean dictator.)

On the laughmeter 鈥淭he Dictator鈥� is closer to 鈥�Borat鈥� than to the misfired 鈥�Bruno,鈥� which is to say it鈥檚 funny for about half of its brisk 83 minutes. This time out Baron Cohen is working with a script and professional actors throughout (including Ben Kingsley as a Wadiyan big shot), and the lack of improvisation is somewhat stifling. He鈥檚 at his best and most daring when he鈥檚 riffing in unplanned situations.

On the other hand, I can understand why he didn鈥檛 want to go into 鈥淏orat鈥� mode with 鈥淭he Dictator.鈥� As it is, he鈥檒l be lucky if he avoids a fatwa.

The bulk of the film involves Aladeen鈥檚 visit to New York in preparation for a speech before the United Nations, during which time he is replaced by an idiotic body double (also played by Baron Cohen) and falls in with a far-left activist (Anna Faris). Political correctness is at no time on the menu. In the end Aladeen delivers a speech equating Wadiya鈥檚 despotism and America鈥檚 鈥渄emocracy.鈥� It鈥檚 like a negative image of the famous humanist speech at the conclusion of Charlie Chaplin鈥檚 鈥�The Great Dictator.鈥�
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If Baron Cohen is going to continue making scripted comedies, he needs to work with directors far less slapdash than Larry Charles (who did 鈥淏orat鈥� and 鈥淏runo鈥�). He can be one of the funniest people on the planet, but he needs a real dictator 鈥� I mean, director 鈥� calling the shots. Grade: B (Rated R for strong crude and sexual content, brief male nudity, language and some violent images.)