A little more on Borat

Lest I come off as the lone voice screaming in the wilderness, I thought I'd link to a few more intelligent dissenting voices on Borat, or aspects of the film. Paul O'Brien goes off on the cruelty of Sacha Baron Cohen and Borat, and while I don't quite share his level of vitriol, I do agree that the comedy of cruelty is pretty shitty (and this goes along with why I don't like Daily Show field reports). Noel Murray (who found the movie hilarious) explains why Borat is not meaningful social satire. Ed Gonzalez (who also liked the movie) points out the inconsistencies and laziness in the characterization, storytelling and social commentary. And Lewis Beale complains about journalists and critics becoming another cog in the Borat publicity machine.