Go over to the Deadly Creatures site, click on videos and watch the clip of them motion-capturing a scorpion. Just do it, trust me. =)

I've slowly gained a deep respect for Sacha Baron Cohen. At first I couldn't stand him. A simple glance at his Ali G routine comes across as just straight Wigger parody, which is mildly amusing at best and at worst rather annoying. But then some of the bits are so brilliantly done: He maintains character and the stupidity causes interesting reflections from the people he interviews. Still, when he lacks an interview subject or is placed within his own fictional world, Ali G comes over as very 2-dimensional. I think Sacha Baron Cohen is aware of that flaw however, because his other two characters seem never on their own.

His Borat character is pure genius. Reflection parody at its finest, Borat's magical formula comes from how Western culture is both bred to 'respect' other cultures yet act superior to them at the same time. He's this charming visitor from Kazakhstan on the surface, all willing to learn our way of life, but underneath holds shocking values towards women, races, sex, etc.. He forwards an ignorance that both makes people comfortable in their own beliefs and at the same time throws them completely off-guard when they discover his (apparent) beliefs.

One simple way of throwing North Americans off-guard is by giving those two (eastern european?) kisses on the cheeks to any men, yet refusing to even offer a handshake to women. Warmth to the gender we percieve as cold and vise-versa. That one gesture preps them for what follows. Explanations of his wife having died opens up people's hearts too, until... well if you watch any of the video clips online you'll get the idea soon enough.

The ignorance and intolerance of this comedic persona and how he has used it to bring out the truth in some circumstances has done more for human rights and understanding than most indignant marches. It's very reminiscint of Andy Kaufman's personas, somehow combining Latka and Tony Clifton into one, but obnoxious to a more direct purpose. He also reminds me somewhat of Father Guido Sarducci. So slowly, over time, I've learned to appreciate Sacha Baron Cohen, a man I at first thought was just a buffoon.

My first exposure to Borat was with this interview on Conan, where Conan kinda gives it away by playing along, yet not entirely sure how to do so.

I also recommend Borat's Myspace page, the first (and probably last) link I've provided for that site, simply because he parodies it so well while he's on it. And now, there's a Borat movie coming in November. I'm looking forward to it.

I think I'm becoming a YouTube Slut, I'm getting addicted to linking interesting or amusing videos. You decide where this one fits it. It's about handjobs, decide on your own if it's safe to watch or not, though I don't think you'll be disappointed: