The latest outing from Sacha Baron Cohen follows the experiences of an eccentric dictator named Aladeen (Baron Cohen) who strives to prevent democracy being introduced in his home country of Wadiya. After travelling to the US to make a speech he's kidnapped, de-bearded and replaced by a brain-dead double. Breaking free, he's taken in by a vegan, liberal activist (Faris), and begins to hatch a plan to prevent Wadiya becoming a democracy.
Comparisons of The Dictator to recent outings such as Borat and Bruno are slightly misleading. The genius of his previous work was melding bizarre fictional characters with unknowing bystanders. Using these exuberant creations, such as Borat, he was able draw reactions out of members of the public that were often shocking, and sometimes hilarious. This is not evident once in The Dictator, which moves away from away from the documentary style and feels like 83 minutes of filler, with no end reward. Instead the audience is subjected to what is in essence a very poor, gross-out comedy, which relies almost entirely on its ability to shock. It harks back to the Ali G IndaHouse era, which few will think of as Baron Cohen's golden age.
There are some comical moments, such as Aladeen and a friend taking a helicopter ride with two American tourists and, while gesturing innocently, appear that they are about to commit a terrorist attack. However these brief flashes are not enough to save a disappointing third outing, which will survive primarily due to the kudos established by previous titles, and the hype Baron Cohen once again masterfully orchestrated. If another Baron Cohen character is created it will surely need more substance than The Dictator has to offer.
Comparisons of The Dictator to recent outings such as Borat and Bruno are slightly misleading. The genius of his previous work was melding bizarre fictional characters with unknowing bystanders. Using these exuberant creations, such as Borat, he was able draw reactions out of members of the public that were often shocking, and sometimes hilarious. This is not evident once in The Dictator, which moves away from away from the documentary style and feels like 83 minutes of filler, with no end reward. Instead the audience is subjected to what is in essence a very poor, gross-out comedy, which relies almost entirely on its ability to shock. It harks back to the Ali G IndaHouse era, which few will think of as Baron Cohen's golden age.
There are some comical moments, such as Aladeen and a friend taking a helicopter ride with two American tourists and, while gesturing innocently, appear that they are about to commit a terrorist attack. However these brief flashes are not enough to save a disappointing third outing, which will survive primarily due to the kudos established by previous titles, and the hype Baron Cohen once again masterfully orchestrated. If another Baron Cohen character is created it will surely need more substance than The Dictator has to offer.