The Dictator

Someone recently asked me if The Dictator is funny and if I laughed while watching? Well no, I rarely laughed but somehow the movie is funny. That is the enigma of Sacha Barron Cohen. Having emerged as a legitimate actor with his roles in movies like Sweeney Todd and Hugo, the comedian still returns to these immersive roles that made him famous. In The Dictator, Cohen plays Admiral General Aladeen, the dictator of a fictional North-African country. When he travels to the US to address the United Nations, he falls victim to a plot to secretly kill him and seize his power. But don’t believe that this is some complex mystery. The plotline acts as a vehicle for a number of uncomfortable skits to play out in the context of a story.

While the shock value is still present, there is a precedent that was set with Cohen’s previous films, Borat and Bruno, which allows the audience to avoid the film if they don’t like his brand of humor. They do however move away from the documentary format of those other films that would showcase the embarrassing actions of civilians interacting with the film’s characters. The Dictator is a fictional film through and through with actors playing all of the parts. That makes for a less awkward viewing experience.

The film seesaws between witty moments and tired stereotypes. Environmentalist women with hairy armpits just don’t push the envelope like one would expect from the controversial star. But then there are some moments that are quite ripe. I won’t post them here because this is a family blog. Overall, the film is polarizing with audiences. It falls into a small demographic, which is willing to embrace the shock style comedy of Jackass or Borat and will offend and disgust everyone else.

Each film earns either zero, a half or a full arrow in five categories. The categories are Acting, Writing/Directing, Emotion, Innovation and Overall Impression. The arrows are added up to equal the full score.