Brüno

[RegularKarate]

Alright, so's I got lied to by my "man on the inside" (he was playing joke on me).
Scott Aukerman (the head writer for the show) confirmed they rehearsed it before-hand and it went exactly as it did during the taping.

[modage]

duh

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/2008-12-6-motion-captured/posts/2009-6-1-the-truth-about-eminem-and-bruno-revealed

[Neil]

What a great debate it was for a second or two.

I personally enjoyed the level pete took it to with;

you don't just land like that on somebody unless it was coordinated.  try it.

god i love this message board. and that is 110% non-sarcasm

[pete]

I know you're a good kid but goddammit as soon as I saw that you'd replied I knew it was gonna be something condescending to make me feel shitty for discussing something in the pop culture.

I've worked with many stunt crews on wires, and it's hard to coordinate with people on rigs unless everyone's in on it.  YOU HAPPY NOW.  Goddammit go read your precious book on advertising, good kid.  Then say something else snide in the twilight section.

[Pas]

WTF 

[Stefen]

Are you two like beefing in real life because I've never noticed it here.

[RegularKarate]

I want to know what made Pete assume Neil was being condescending... especially since he said he wasn't being sarcastic.

[pete]

nah I think he's a great kid but sometimes he gets automatically snide at people places and things he considers pedestrian.  I'm done now though.  Great kid again.

[Pas]

WTF 

[Kal]

WTF 

[Neil]

Jesus H.

My grandpa has never called me a "good kid" so many times...i guess i got under your skin, i just thought it was funny that you bluntly broke it down like that. i've never even watched this infamous clip...i just truly thought it was humorous in the context of which it said. and stefens reply intensified the funny,

whoa

sorry you had such a bad day.

[MacGuffin]

Baron Cohen sued over 'Bruno' stint
Woman claims bingo incident left her disabled

LANCASTER, Calif. (AP) -- Sacha Baron Cohen's new movie isn't in theaters yet, but it's already producing the same sort of buzz and legal backlash that his last hit, "Borat," created. Richelle Olson sued the 37-year-old actor and NBC Universal on May 22, claiming an incident at a charity bingo tournament that was filmed for the upcoming "Bruno" left her disabled.

Olson claims she was severely injured after struggling with Cohen and his film crew at the event, held in Palmdale, Calif., two years ago. The lawsuit states she now needs a wheelchair or cane to move around.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages of more than $25,000.

Phone and e-mail messages sent to publicists for Cohen and NBC Universal weren't immediately returned Wednesday.

Cohen's 2006 film, "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," produced numerous lawsuits by people claiming they were duped and humiliated by his antics. A New York judge last year threw out claims by a driving instructor and two etiquette teachers after determining they signed agreements releasing filmmakers from liability.

It was unclear whether the incident involving Olson will appear in "Bruno." The lawsuit mentions contracts that Olson apparently signed, but claim they were entered under "duress" and included several misrepresentations.

"Borat" was a surprise box-office hit, earning more than $125 million in the United States.

In "Bruno," scheduled for release July 10, Cohen plays a flamboyantly gay Austrian fashionista. Much like in "Borat," Cohen's humor depends on cajoling people to let him into events and he then tapes their reactions to his outlandish behavior.

Olson's lawsuit contends Cohen has 30 sham companies that help him pull off his ruses and that is how the comedian and his camera crew gained entry into the Desert Valley Charities' bingo tournament in May 2007.

Cohen was invited to the event because his handlers identified him as a "celebrity" who was filming a documentary on bingo, the suit states. The event was to raise money for nursing students.

According to the lawsuit, Cohen - in character as Bruno - started using vulgarities while calling the second bingo game in front of a mostly elderly audience.

A struggle ensued after Olson tried to grab the microphone away from Cohen. She claims he then called his camera crew over, who attacked her for at least a minute, hoping to "create a dramatic emotional response."

Olson's suit states she ran from the stage and was found moments later by a co-worker, sobbing uncontrollably. She then fell to the floor, hitting her head on a concrete slab.

The suit states she suffered brain bleeding as a result.

The lawsuit, filed in Lancaster, which is about 70 miles north of downtown Los Angeles, was first reported by celebrity gossip Web site TMZ.

[MacGuffin]

Gay activists wary of 'Bruno'
Universal says moviegoers will see 'positive intentions'
Reuters

U.S. gay activists are worried that Sacha Baron Cohen's new film, "Bruno," could reinforce negative stereotypes about homosexuals just as they are making gains in the fight for rights like same-sex marriage.

Baron Cohen, who scored a surprise hit in 2006 with "Borat," portrays a flamboyant gay Austrian fashion reporter in the film, which premieres Wednesday in London and opens in the U.S. on July 10.

Universal said the film's intent is to satirize homophobia, but some gay advocates are wary.

"We do feel the intentions of the filmmakers are in the right place -- satire of this form can unmask homophobia -- but at the same time it can heighten people's discomfort with our community," said Rashad Robinson, senior director of media programs for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

With that in mind, GLAAD asked in vain for Universal to add a message from Baron Cohen addressing the importance of gay rights and tolerance.

Universal said it believes most moviegoers will understand the film's "positive intentions."

" 'Bruno' uses provocative comedy to powerfully shed light on the absurdity of many kinds of intolerance and ignorance, including homophobia," the studio said.

The movie comes out as U.S. same-sex couples have won the right to wed in six states amid a fierce debate on gay marriage that has seen California voters approve a ban on such unions.

"Bruno" is expected to be a hit, though there remains a big question about whether the young men who make up a core Hollywood audience will turn out for a movie about a gay man.

"It's going to be interesting to see if a bunch of teenage boys actually care to go," said gay activist Cathy Renna.

But one thing is certain -- Baron Cohen has a huge fan base. Men and women flocked to "Borat," a fake documentary about a Kazakh journalist traveling across the U.S. that used comedy to expose bigotry. It earned $128 million at U.S. and Canadian box offices and $133 million in other countries.

Like its predecessor, "Bruno" is a mock documentary that covers the fashion reporter after he loses his job in Austria and goes to America looking to become a celebrity. Bruno wears mesh shirts, talks with a lisp and has a penchant for dropping his pants.

His unscripted encounters with everyday Americans and prominent figures, who think he is real, often devolve into people's disgusted reaction to Bruno's in-your-face sexuality.

In one scene, for instance, a martial arts teacher shows Bruno how to guard against gays. GLAAD's Robinson said another scene worried him that shows Bruno appearing to have sex with a man in a tub, while his adopted baby sits nearby.

"That wasn't really unmasking homophobia, and especially in a country where same-sex couples can still be denied the ability to adopt children that they've raised since birth. Trivializing gay families isn't a joke," Robinson said.

But gay groups also see potential from the film. "Bigotry and homophobia still today get cloaked in many different nuanced ways, so a movie like this has the potential to let everyone in on the joke and to really change the way homophobia is viewed," said Brad Luna, a spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign.

[MacGuffin]

Michael Jackson scene cut from 'Bruno'
Universal makes decision hours before L.A. premiere
Source: Hollywood Reporter

The sudden death of Michael Jackson on Thursday prompted a series of discussions at Universal Pictures that resulted in the studio cutting a Jackson-related sketch from "Bruno" only hours before its Los Angeles premiere.

Uni removed a scene in which Bruno, the flamboyant Austrian journalist played by Sacha Baron Cohen, interviews an unsuspecting LaToya Jackson about a number of topics, including her brother.

Among the gags is a joke about the King of Pop's high-pitched voice, as well as a reference to his trademark white glove, all done in Baron Cohen's characteristically absurdist tone.

The scene played at press screenings earlier in the week, where it did not stand out as unusually outrageous in the context of Baron Cohen's other antics.

But after Jackson's death on Thursday, the studio and filmmakers decided to remove the scene for the premiere screening out of sensitivity to the Jackson family. The film now cuts directly from Baron Cohen's gonzo interview with Paula Abdul to a focus-group for his faux reality show.

Still, because many critics attended those earlier showings, its content could make its way into reviews. Indeed, removing the scene in a way calls more attention to it, though the studio clearly wanted to avoid even the perception of poor taste at any cost.

"We decided to take it out for tonight, and we'll reassess before the release whether to keep it out," said director Larry Charles at the premiere's afterparty. A spokesperson for Universal also confirmed that it had not come to any decision on future showings.

In a sense today's move was the easy part. The studio is going wide with the film in two weeks, and cutting the scene from every print could be a laborious and expensive process.

It's rare that a studio changes a movie in post because of current events, though in a slightly different vein, studios pushed back the release of films such as "Spider-Man" in the wake of Sept. 11.

[RegularKarate]

So, I saw this last night.

It's pretty damned funny.  I would say it's not as good as Borat, but will probably get just as much attention if not more from the wrong types of people.

I think the funniest parts of the movie are in the first half then the movie starts to just feel like a series of stunts (which is basically what these movies are, but they seem more focused in Borat) that don't really properly escalate.

Luckily it's very short and works because of that.  When you're tired of laughing at "gay guy does outrageous things in front of homophobes" (which is about half of the movie) then it's over.

B+