New Sacha Baron Cohen show in the US! Genius

mart

As comedy I guess it’s great if that’s your bag.

As an insight into the actual beliefs of the marks targeted, I’m not convinced - Stan Milgram’s experiment shows that people can be persuaded to do/say all kinds of things that they wouldn’t otherwise, and it seems to me that SBC is simply exploiting the human frailties that Milgram identified.

jonnyburgo

I think their is an element of social conformity at play here. Sometimes if is uncomfortable in a one on one to disagree in a forthright manner to outrageous statements, although this is pretty extreme to say the least. Look at Trump when next to Putin the other day. Now he’s safely away from him he claims a slip of the tongue.

JezWynd

His pretending to have poor english is a clever trick. It encourages his interviewees to use simple plain language. It's a device he's used a lot during his career. It's amusing enough for a couple of minutes but I imagine it wears thin over half an hour. Plus, you don't need tricks these days to get politicians to say the most ridiculous, obscene things.

Gagaryn

JezWynd said:

His pretending to have poor english is a clever trick. It encourages his interviewees to use simple plain language. It's a device he's used a lot during his career. It's amusing enough for a couple of minutes but I imagine it wears thin over half an hour. Plus, you don't need tricks these days to get politicians to say the most ridiculous, obscene things.

The last sentence hits the nail on the head. I didn't enjoy it.

The concept seems dated nowadays, real life has plenty of examples of gun nuts advocating more guns as the answer to gun problems. The uber-liberal / new age guy describing his wife being nobbed by a dolphin in that daft republican couples daft house was just daft.

The ex con / art dealer bit was the highlight for me - not sure what the point of the skit was, no surprise that the art world could see potential merit in the concept that was being set out, but that chick clipping and presenting her pubes was brilliant - think I'm in love!

Roysterdoyster

I like SBC a lot but Ill go against the grain here.....with the exception of the Col Erran Morad section, I though the rest of it was well...........pretty rubbish actually. Was that a one off,or is it a series

Gagaryn

Roysterdoyster said:

I like SBC a lot but Ill go against the grain here.....with the exception of the Col Erran Morad section, I though the rest of it was well...........pretty rubbish actually. Was that a one off,or is it a series

Series - Sarah Palin in the next one. Amazingly, he manages to make her look like a numpty, apparently.

axisus

I haven't seen it, but I never feel that comfortable about humour that basically humiliates other individuals for a laugh. It's not a one-off moment like with your mates down the pub, it is there online forever.

He is undeniably a clever guy who takes risks, and I'm sure I would laugh at some of this show, but if I am choosing what to watch I probably wouldn't choose to go to this type of material personally.

Iamnobody

SBC is definitely up there with the comedy greats. His output can be patchy sometimes though.

A lot of the best tend to push boundaries. He does that well.

Don’t watch the one below at work - what’s hard to believe is just how dim witted his marks are.

I know a lot of research goes into it and they are basically told lies to get them into the compromising situations - but unless there’s a gun being pointed at them, these idiots could and should just walk away from it...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4k4pMTsa1Kw

MrBump

Yeah, I find it uncomfortable to watch - I guess that's maybe the point?

Can't decide if it's funny or not.  It's more of a "oooh, really?!?!" sort of funny.

LuttiS

Forgot about this... Did anyone watch beyond first episode?

CHRISB50

LuttiS said:

Forgot about this... Did anyone watch beyond first episode?

I didn't even make it to the end of the first episode.

I normally love SBC stuff. Borat and Bruno were fantastic.

I just couldn't get into this one unfortunately..

EricTheWeary

Some of it has come up on my youtube feed and I've watched small bits  and I've seen stuff in the past. Just always seems like he is trying to prove he is cleverer than the other person ( or at least play with what they find socially uncomfortable) rather than genuinely doing anything clever or funny. I even quite disliked his appearance in The Simpsons before I realised it was him. 
I'd like to be edgy and down with the kids so I've tried but it doesn't work for me.

smogmonster

Politicians are arch manipulators, so seeing them being led by the nose to their own humiliation is extremely gratifying. We no longer have the stocks or the guilloutine so this is the next best thing.

Whether intentional or not, these clips also expose the corruption of so much mainstream journalism. The interviews with Joe Walsh and Sarah Palin posted earlier in the thread were very illuminating, especially the latter where the ABC anchor took Palin's side. We can laugh at the gullibility of experienced public figures falling into Cohen's trap, but it is hardly surprising if you consider most 'journalists' they encounter are little more than fawning courtiers; in these circumstances it would be easy to become complacent and drop the guard.

It is understandable why people have reservations about SBC's tactics, but when aimed in the right direction - ie upwards at the powerful - this stuff serves a useful purpose. I would even argue it is effectively public interest journalism as it shows up these people for what they really are, as opposed to the image they would have us accept.