What do you think of this guy, Sacha Baron Cohen who portrays Ali G?
Ill put my thoughts down in a bit, dont want to spoil the jury.
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There have been a few threads about this (but of course you can’t search for “Ali G”):
Da Ali G show
Did anyone see the Ali G show on HBO?
UK Dopers - Ali G - Black/white/both
I suppose people have the same opinion now as they did then?
I think he’s a jerk, myself, but I get the joke.
What baffles me is that so many of his interviewees either DON’T get the joke or lack the common sense to call an end to the interview once it becomes obvious that the whole thing is a put-on.
When Howard Stern’s sidekick Stuttering John ambushes a celebrity and asks a silly or embarrassing question, they regularly call him a ____ (fill in your favorite expletive) and walk away. Understandably so! But as far as I can tell, none of the people Ali G hits with silly questions have the intelligence to do the same.
Of course, walking away would mean NOT being on television… and to many people (including Newt Gingrich and Brent Scowcroft, apparently), it’s more important to be on television than to show a little backbone or dignity.
Apparently what you see is a heavily edited version of the actual interview (~two hours edited down to ten minutes tops). For the most part his questions are normal or slightly naïve, but every so often he drops a ridiculous one in, so the overall effect doesn’t seem like a wind up at the time.
Also he generally chooses interviewees who spend most of their time with like-minded people or predictable opponents so they have standard replies ready for every question. The comedy comes from them having to confront their own attitude in an unforseen way and failing to cope. My favourites from the shows over here include the vegetarian “Would you ever eat chicken? No. But what if I shot another chicken unless you ate it?”; and the politician in Northern Ireland.
Avoid his movie at all costs though.
Yeah I dont have HBO, and I recently saw him on the Conan O’Brien show, and the magic of cable modems and p2p sharing whalah… Ali G, Aiiii?
I have since discovered sooo many of people who get offended by his schtick. And, yeah, some of it is totally out there, but damn… I can not remember a comedian that I have laughed so much with in a very long time.
When he went to the Cannes Porn Festival, and stated. “Today, I is gonna speaks with some ladies who is had more knobs in dem, den anyone else in the world, Respeck.”
I fookin lost it. Great schtick, some people take him too seriously and at face value, and that is why he is so successful. Controversary breeds interest.