Rebel Rebel, you might as well

What you're probably expecting to see, if you haven't seen it already: A movie about a flamboyant Austrian fashionista trying to strike it in the fashion industry, making fun of celebritards, and making people generally uncomfortable about gay folk.

What you're going to see:
A movie that's constantly derailed from it's original intentions so much so to the point where you forget how you even got to where you are, and why it really even matters.

Is it a funny movie? Hell yes, it's a funny movie! There are some scenes-- heretoforth known as 'sketches,' since honestly they mostly played out like cracked-out SNL skits loosely connected by a meandering storyline-- that are so painfully awkward, so insanely over the top in their straight-forward'ness, that you can't help but laugh. But for that same awkwardness, this is almost like a horror movie where, even if you hate the people on screen, you want to shout out and warn them about what's going to happen next; because sometimes it's so painfully obvious, you wonder how the person Brüno (Sacha Baron Cohen) is pranking doesn't catch on sooner.

Though the movie does lack in coherence, I have to give it credit. You can see the point where their original plans of making fun of fashion, or celebrities later on, were so bluntly brought to a screetching hault-- they even make fun of themselves at one point over being 'blacklisted' after the Paula Abdul incident-- they just keep pushing on, finding new, more unsuspecting people to torment. Like Middle Eastern terrorists.

There's a lot of controversy over this movie for a plethora of reasons: shining light on peoples ignorances, showcasing what some parents will go through to get their kids in front of the camera, going too far for a joke, et cetera and whatever. But the thing everyone is talking about is "It's gonna piss off the gays!" and "It's homophobic!"

Take it from a gay guy, this isn't really a homophobic movie. It's about a gay character, yes, and plays up peoples ignorance and plain arrogence of gay people-- but it's from a completely extreme point of view. Same thing with Borat on race, and Ali G on class issues. It's social commentary, without being obvious. If Sacha and crew had managed to stick with the fashion aspect of everything, yet kept up the same amount of assinine behaviour, would anyone be saying anything? I doubt it. But he purposely went into middle America, and to other locations that are less than queer-friendly, and purposely pushed buttons to get a rise out of them. Subject matter be damned, he wanted reactions.

In a weird way, this movie (like Borat) shows both the worst and best in people, surprisingly in the same moment. You have people who when you see their reactions to Brüno's behaviour you want to beat them with a brick, but then you have to realize that these people willingly let him hang out with them only to have him act like a buttface. When you think about it like that, the way they react to his antics almost makes sense.

Almost.

Sacha Baron Cohen may very well be the best character actor of our time. No, wait, hear me out! There are a lot of amazing actors, people who can play characters well, and even some who can play a wide bill of characters well. But how many are willing to stay in character even when they're around people with guns that don't like them, are throwing chairs at them, or just generally want to murder them? I honestly can't think of any. He may be an idiot and an ass for the things that he does, but you've got to commend him for sticking to it.

But I digress, is this movie funny? Absolutely. Is it quote-worthy? Not as much as Borat was, but it has it's moments. Will you see it again? I totally doubt it-- at least until the directors cut of the movie comes out, which will probably have a hundred hours of deleted footage. That'll make it worth while.