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New Sacha Baron Cohen show

Started by up_the_hampipe, July 08, 2018, 11:53:01 PM

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newbridge

My theory is that the Sanders segment was in it because it was funny.

Moribunderast

Quote from: newbridge on July 18, 2018, 01:09:29 AM
My theory is that the Sanders segment was in it because it was funny.

I mean, the character's attempted explanation of getting 99% into the 1% made it worthwhile for me. The only aspect of the show I was iffy on was the art woman because she seemed to be an innocent target for ridicule, so while I found that segment funny I did question why it was happening in a show ostensibly about exposing or mocking American values.

First 3/4ths left me thinking what was the point but yes the last segment on guns was quite good.

Opening on that Bernie Sanders bit was an odd choice - I get the sense he's hip to it and knows who Sacha Baron Cohen is so it was kinda limp.

Hecate

That whole Cardi-B, Wiz Khalifa section just felt like an empty wink to the audience, a bit "Aaaaah, your grandma doesn't know what a pokemon is!".

Really makes you appreciate the exciting "just a little bit further, just a little bit more" risk taking and creativity of stuff like Joss Ackland's spunky backpack and Shatner's bassoon.

This prick knows who William Shatner is but no doubt Morris had a convincing explanation as to why the part of the brain that deals with time perception was called that. Discovered by some scientist nerd that was obsessed with star trek, captains log, you know, "Shatner's Log" was already the name of a rare bowel complaint and the area of the brain was shaped like a bassoon so he went with it?

Cohen's just making your nan read out a list of the top 20 chart acts like it's her prescription.

I think I might have enjoyed one particular episode of facejacker more, though I'd have to double check that.
Will definitely keep watching.

Second half definitely miles better, as people are saying, was fun overall.

Shaky

Quote from: Frank Wank on July 17, 2018, 10:43:33 PM
Watch it again, but pay attention this time. You may need to remove head from arse first.

Mixed feelings. I'm really glad this show exists and it's riling some conservative backs but content-wise it's pretty thin so far. The best bits really do reek of Brass Eye, which is fine but it's not in the same league. I like Cohen but a couple of the characters are very sketchy and ill-thought out. Bar the aforementioned gun bit, I struggled to see the point of it which is bit of a killer for satire. What's the bet we get an Erran Morad movie out of this at some point?

checkoutgirl

Gave this a crack last night. First I'd say comparisons to Brass Eye are a bit wide of the mark. It hinted at that maybe a bit with the cuddly guns segment and the interviews but nowhere near the amount of effort was put in compared to Brass Eye which had things like superior graphics, structure and studios audiences so comparisons are tenuous. Also I can't imagine Paul Daniels or Noel Edmonds pushing guns for 3 year olds. I also question the motives of the gun nuts, are they doing anything just to be on telly or are they genuinely disturbed enough to think guns are appropriate for toddlers? Americans I would say are easier to manipulate because they want to be on telly all the more, also more people are desperate to be on telly now by any means necessary than in the 1990s.

My favourite segment was the radical left wing guy as it had a few decent moments but even then I had a couple of problems. The fat neck prosthetic did not look real to me. Also they just accepted the idea that his wife had a sexual relationship with a dolphin. Again, just going along to appear on telly?

The Erran Morad character really reminded me of Freddie Mercury which might be a bit ironic as it was the botched biopic of him that brought Cohen back to TV and this show.

I'd give it 5/10, some funny moments but it all felt a bit staged with most of the participants maybe in on the joke just to get their face on the box, and Cohen is just going over old ground at this stage, still putting on a disguise to trick celebrities. I'd be surprised to see Chris Morris doing Copper Ear 15 years after doing Brass Eye instead of the film he is currently working on or Paul Kay still doing an version of Dennis Pennis years after a successful acting career. Cohen is very successful but graduating to films for a decade and now doing telly again feels like a step back.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: Utter Shit on July 17, 2018, 03:53:16 PM
As for pointless...I'd say there's a lot more point in highlighting members of congress blindly agreeing with a load of bollocks about America's gun laws, which are killing endless children every year, than managing to trick Richard Blackwood and Dr. Fox into saying that paedophiles have the same DNA as crabs or use scent-infused keyboards.

There's no point to either, it's entertainment. Do you seriously think people are going to watch this and think "Oh, right, guns aren't brilliant". Of course not. American politics is so polarised it's pretty much a satire in real life at this stage. Sasha Baron Cohen and Russell Brand are not going to sort it out. Nor should they as it's not their job. Nor should a TV show whose main job is to entertain even be seen in that context.

For me the most informative show on American politics in any genre at the moment is that John Oliver show, but most people aren't going to watch that and the people who do already agree with the ideas in it.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: Dr Marbles on July 17, 2018, 12:59:02 PM
I'm guessing if it wasn't Sanders then it wouldn't have made the cut at all, but they wanted to start the show with someone that people had heard of, establishing that this was the calibre of big names that would be coming in the series, before quickly moving on to something else (Sanders bit was, what, about 4 minutes long?).

Strange because as a rule in showbiz you should lead with your best stuff to hook people in. The Sanders bit was strange as all he really did was pull an incredulous face at the end. I'd agree that he was the most famous face in this episode and they were loathe to waste the segment, probably cost them a few bob to set up too.

sevendaughters

I don't think it will change much now but it's a good document of what people are actually thinking and saying in private and how that contributes to the absolute shitmess we're in. Brass Eye didn't make Tory politicians less alarmist on drugs.

Chollis

i thought the funniest bit was Erran Morad's gait

Frank Wank

Quote from: Hecate on July 18, 2018, 03:26:15 AM
That whole Cardi-B, Wiz Khalifa section just felt like an empty wink to the audience, a bit "Aaaaah, your grandma doesn't know what a pokemon is!".
...
Cohen's just making your nan read out a list of the top 20 chart acts like it's her prescription.


Jesus Christ. Are you deliberately missing the point? It wasn't just a random old dear failing to recognise a Pokémon, it was a senior lobbyist Jesus, fuck it, I'll just eat my face instead of explaining comedy to you.

Jackson K Pollock

Quote from: Frank Wank on July 18, 2018, 07:07:26 PM

Jesus Christ. Are you deliberately missing the point? It wasn't just a random old dear failing to recognise a Pokémon, it was a senior lobbyist Jesus, fuck it, I'll just eat my face instead of explaining comedy to you.

Dude, we got the jokes, we're just saying we didn't find them particularly funny and they were done better by someone else 20 years ago.

Clownbaby

Quote from: Jackson K Pollock on July 18, 2018, 07:18:35 PM
Dude, we got the jokes, we're just saying we didn't find them particularly funny and they were done better by someone else 20 years ago.

+1

New Jack

Another reminder to look at the truthbrary.org site - it's really funny, and quite in depth, I like the "CIA and Rock n Roll"  article, it's absolutely mental

QuoteThe Cultural Cold War was a huge operation, featuring incredible amounts of money, art, and secrecy. So much secrecy, in fact, that many of those involved had no idea their place of employment was a CIA front. The composer Nicolas Nabokov, Vladimir's cousin, worked for the CCF. Worried by all those malicious rumors about the CCF's true purpose, he wrote back to headquarters that "Many [European Intellectuals] think of our Congress as some sort of semi-clandestine American organization controlled by you. I think our constant efforts should be directed towards proving to European Intellectuals that the Congress for Cultural Freedom is not an American secret service Agency." Which it was. But why should he know that?

up_the_hampipe

Quote from: Jackson K Pollock on July 18, 2018, 07:18:35 PM
Dude, we got the jokes, we're just saying we didn't find them particularly funny and they were done better by someone else 20 years ago.

To be fair, Hecate's analysis of those particular jokes was bullshit, so maybe it does need to be explained.

darby o chill

Quote from: Chollis on July 18, 2018, 01:12:46 PM
i thought the funniest bit was Erran Morad's gait

Yeah it's great, almost too much but you see cunts walking like that. The face is weird though, like some Mrs Doubtfire/Uri Geller mess.

Frank Wank

Quote from: Jackson K Pollock on July 18, 2018, 07:18:35 PM
Dude, we got the jokes, we're just saying we didn't find them particularly funny and they were done better by someone else 20 years ago.

That's not what was said, though.

Hecate

Quote from: up_the_hampipe on July 18, 2018, 07:47:53 PM
To be fair, Hecate's analysis of those particular jokes was bullshit

Aw, man, I knew I was an idiot.

Johnny Yesno

Channel 4 trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65_LXgWTSj8

Very Brass Eye in places, but too ludicrous to fool anyone, particularly the make-up, you'd think.

Which is what makes it all the more chilling.

Ballad of Ballard Berkley

I have nothing much to add, as usual, as I agree with the more or less general consensus that it was quite weak apart from the jaw-dropping gun segment. A great, albeit depressing, piece of satire.

I would, however, like to reiterate the fact that Erran Morad's ludicrous gait is hilarious. It says so much about the character - and hard-hitting, macho investigative reporters in general - while also just being a daft, funny bit of physical comedy business. I'm a big fan of silly walks, and SBC has come up with a corker here. 

Johnny Yesno

Joe Walsh explains how he was pranked by Sacha Baron Cohen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9LjwRRO9fk

Sarah Palin responds to Sacha Baron Cohen prank: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VNEJrsaOJk

Amazing.

Mango Chimes

They put the gun bit on YouTube, and I found it excruciating in its awkwardness. But not because of the prank stuff, but because he looks like he's on Bo Selecta or that crocodile bloke from Suicide Squad. And as these things invariably look much better on camera, I couldn't believe that in person he didn't look like a man in a big rubber mask. (The walk is funny.)

Skipped through the rest, and agree on the third-rate Brass Eye bit. A-ha Wiz Kalifa. Doesn't make me want to watch any more.

Ballad of Ballard Berkley

He doesn't really look like a man in a big rubber mask.

We know he's wearing prosthetic make-up because we know who he is, but as people have said already in this thread, when you turn up for an ostensibly serious interview with an arguably somewhat odd-looking journalist, you're not going to think, "Is this guy wearing a disguise?" That wouldn't really occur to you.

I mean, Morris is obviously wearing a tatty false moustache in some of his prank interviews, but no one, as far as I'm aware, ever picked him up on that either. 


Ballad of Ballard Berkley

Quote from: Johnny Yesno on July 18, 2018, 11:58:18 PM
Joe Walsh explains how he was pranked by Sacha Baron Cohen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9LjwRRO9fk

Sarah Palin responds to Sacha Baron Cohen prank: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VNEJrsaOJk

Amazing.

Their moronic reactions to being 'punked' by SBC are funnier than most of the actual show itself.

Mango Chimes

Quote from: Ballad of Ballard Berkley on July 19, 2018, 12:38:14 AM
He doesn't really look like a man in a big rubber mask.



He looks like he could be in a fucking Dolmio advert.




St_Eddie

Quote from: Mango Chimes on July 19, 2018, 12:49:19 AM
Quote from: Ballad of Ballard Berkley on July 19, 2018, 12:38:14 AM
He doesn't really look like a man in a big rubber mask.

We know he's wearing prosthetic make-up because we know who he is, but as people have said already in this thread, when you turn up for an ostensibly serious interview with an arguably somewhat odd-looking journalist, you're not going to think, "Is this guy wearing a disguise?" That wouldn't really occur to you.


He looks like he could be in a fucking Dolmio advert.

Yes, I would immediately recognise that as a prosthetic mask but as others have said, I would likely not say anything, out of fear for the possibility of it being some kind of botched cosmetic surgery or something.  It would certainly get my guard up and make me suspicious that I was being pranked though (especially given the cameras), at which point I'd watch everything I said to the point where much of footage would be borderline unusable in a prank show (Bernie Sanders?), or I'd play along and have a laugh with it (the gallery owner?).  It's ludicrous to suggest that he only looks fake because we're looking for it.

newbridge

Saying this show is not as good as Brass Eye (on a Chris Morris fan forum no less) seems like a slightly unfair standard.

Ballad of Ballard Berkley

Quote from: St_Eddie on July 19, 2018, 12:58:48 AM


He looks like he could be in a fucking Dolmio advert.


Yes, I would immediately recognise that as a prosthetic mask but as others have said, I would likely not say anything, out of fear for the possibility of it being some kind of botched cosmetic surgery or something.  It would certainly get my guard up and make me suspicious that I was being pranked though (especially given the cameras), at which point I'd watch everything I said to the point where much of footage would be borderline unusable in a prank show (Bernie Sanders?), or I'd play along and have a laugh with it (the gallery owner?).  It's ludicrous to suggest that he only looks fake because we're looking for it.

I wasn't suggesting that, and we obviously agree - as per my previous post - the most people, out of politeness, would never bring up the fact that an interviewer looks a bit weird. My point was that we, the viewers, know it's Cohen wearing make-up, so we don't suspend our disbelief. His interviewees will, because they're not thinking, "Hang on, isn't that Joe Pasquale Sacha Baron Cohen?"

From what we saw of the Sanders and gallery owner interviews, they seemed to twig quite quickly that they were being pranked by some twat in a mask. Sanders was bored and nixed the interview, while the gallery owner presumably thought it would be a laugh to go along with it. Utterly pointless comedy, obviously, as this sort of thing only works if the interviewee is taken in, which the gun nuts obviously were.

newbridge

That's Sacha Baron Cohen in a mask, baby!


St_Eddie

Quote from: Ballad of Ballard Berkley on July 19, 2018, 01:54:30 AM
I wasn't suggesting that, and we obviously agree - as per my previous post - the most people, out of politeness, would never bring up the fact that an interviewer looks a bit weird. My point was that we, the viewers, know it's Cohen wearing make-up, so we don't suspend our disbelief. His interviewees will, because they're not thinking, "Hang on, isn't that Joe Pasquale Sacha Baron Cohen?"

From what we saw of the Sanders and gallery owner interviews, they seemed to twig quite quickly that they were being pranked by some twat in a mask. Sanders was bored and nixed the interview, while the gallery owner presumably thought it would be a laugh to go along with it. Utterly pointless comedy, obviously, as this sort of thing only works if the interviewee is taken in, which the gun nuts obviously were.

We are indeed in agreement.  It's just a shame that Sacha Baron Cohen's fame/infamy has led to him having to don such obvious prosthetic make up to conceal his identity, which ironically clue in half of his marks to the pranking nature of the interview, in how obviously fake they are (as you say, Sanders and the gallery owner seemed to be aware of the nature of the show, even if they weren't aware of whom exactly was under the rubber mask).