By Stone Martindale Sep 14, 2006, 3:54 GMT
Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen was already in hot water with the government of Kazakhstan over his controversial Ali G off-shoot character, Borat, and now President George Bush himself is going to meet and decide.
Sacha Baron Cohen -stirring up the Kazakhstanis- a country most Americans thought was completely fictional anyway... © Glenn Harris / Photorazzi
The government of Kazakhstan became infuriated with Cohen over his portrayal of Borat, a bumbling Kazakh TV reporter, at the 2005 MTV Europe Music Awards in Lisbon. The upcoming movie, Borat's fictional adventures in the US chasing down Pamela Anderson, has picked the scab off their wound.
In the opening scene, Borat kisses goodbye to his sister, one of the top prostitutes in all of Kazakhstan, and sets off for America in a car pulled by a horse. The movie was hailed as a brilliant when it debuted last week at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Kazakhstan's president Nursultan Nazarbayev, who is set to meet with President Bush in the coming weeks is not amused. Among their list of topics to discuss is the damage done to his country's image by the Borat character.
President Nazarbayev also claims his government will buy "educational" TV spots and print advertisements about the "real Kazakhstan" in a bid to save the country's reputation before the film is released in the U.S. in November.
Satire is lost on the Kazakh government and is very serious about the issue. In fact, they have previously threatened the British comedian with legal action for Borat's memorable and controversial antics, which include constantly ripping his homeland, demeaning women, and urging folks to "Throw the Jew Down the Well."
Borat says “You have my permission to sue this Jew.”
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