Luke wrote:
Oh, I'm sure there are some genuine moments in BORAT, but there are plenty of actors in the movie, and I doubt the majority of the reactions are genuine. That said, actors usually have PR managers. I don't have the time to search for every actor in BORAT, Lord knows imdb wouldn't list them, but I'd wager the majority of main characters are actors.
You didn't actually look at the link I posted, did you?
I base a lot of my opinion on the fact that my friends know how the entertainment industry works.
I don't work in that industry.
So now it's opinion? It wasn't stated as one earlier. But I don't really see how this is a matter of opinion. Either the people in the movie were actor or they weren't. Either their reactions were scripted or they weren't. That's a very binary situation, without a lot of room for interpretation.
Of course the main characters are actors. I don't think too many people were under the impression that Borat's obese traveling companion was a real person.
I own a marketing consulting company and a teeny-tiny catering business. My bread and butter is helping small businesses, and well, selling bread and butter. I do, however, have a great group of friends who work in entertainment. Some work in the East Coast for WNBC, some work in the West Coast for MTV. Believing that the reactions in BORAT are 100% genuine is like believing all the reactions on "The Hills" are genuine. Some are. The majority are not.
So "Borat" is fake because some TV show on MTV that has to generate hours and hours of original programming every season is fake? Sure, people are coached on reality shows. They have to do crap like that to make each episode dramatic/entertaining. They have to make, like, 13-24 episodes in short turnaround. Also, a whole lot of reality show participants are people who either are actors or want to be actors.
But with Borat, they only had to get about 90 minutes of good footage and had a whole lot longer to do it. Additionally, they were interviewing real people, not aspiring actors (though I'm sure there were a couple in there). In reality television, they follow a few people around for a very long time and have to make drama. In Borat, they never stuck with anyone long enough to need major coaching. I'm sure there was a little bit of prodding or manipulation going on, but the people being filmed were pretty clearly Naaaaaaahhht in on it.
That last bit was a Borat joke.
Vash23n asked about how people agreed to be in the film. As I understand it, most people signed release forms prior to meeting Borat under the assumption that they were participating in a serious documentary meant for eastern European viewers. Many apparently through that the entire film crew was from Belarus.
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