Bruno (18)

Jul 8 2009 Surrey Herald

Sacha Baron Cohen returns as Bruno, the camp Austrian fashionista, writes PIERCE HUNT

SACHA Baron Cohen is back to unleash his third and final alter ego to the world as everyone's favourite gay Austrian fashion victim, Bruno.

If you thought Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan pushed a few boundaries in regards to decency, then prepare yourselves for some extremely uncomfortable viewing.

Baron Cohen took many an American by surprise as Borat, with his unique approach to cultural differences and tasteless humour. But surely he can't still be getting away with making the Yanks look ridiculous? Well, surprise, surprise, he does. The formula may be familiar, but Bruno goes that little bit further on the obscene scale.

From the very beginning, you know what to expect from the crass European. You're soon greeted with a comedy sex montage (insert Benny Hill music here) involving Bruno and his miniature partner. Quite why it's necessary to zoom in on Bruno's privates while they're swirling around in a transparent handheld vacuum cleaner is anyone's guess. But the full-frontal male nudity (there's no attempt at pixelating) may be the film's undoing. With an 18 certificate, the bulk of the intended audience won't be able to get a glimpse of Bruno on the big screen, which will no doubt have serious knock-on effects to the overall success of the feature. By failing to compromise on any of the more risqué scenes, means many a teenager will be left out in the cold and Universal will be kicking themselves.

For Bruno, humiliating celebrities is the order of the day, and La Toya Jackson, Paula Abdul and a hilarious encounter with Harrison Ford provide some awkward, cringe worthy scenes.

Sure, more scenes are staged than are unprepared, but some moments of spontaneity pull the film back on track. The most disturbing sequence is when Bruno auditions babies to star in a photoshoot with his adopted African child OJ. One mother agrees that if her child doesn't lose enough weight before the shoot, she would arrange for her baby to have liposuction. A deafening gasp soon rings out across the cinema leaving people flabbergasted that this woman is actually serious.

The ever flamboyant Bruno is brilliant. His desire to make it in LA means compromising everything he believes in, so he attempts to play it straight. Alas, this doesn't last long. He's unable to control himself and hits on every guy he encounters.

Bruno brings nothing new to the table, but that's not why people are eagerly awaiting this release. It delivers laugh after laugh, even if it does become a little predictable.

If you thought Jim Carrey lowered the tone talking out of his backside in Ace Ventura, then you haven't seen anything yet. Bruno goes one step beyond with his talking todger - yes, another genital shot.

Bruno is hardly a film you'd want to sit through with the grandparents, but it will have your inner child choking on its popcorn with laughter throughout.