Ali G! Borat! Brüno! Sacha Baron Cohen may hide behind the personas of his brilliant comic creations but there is no denying the daring of the ground-breaking British comic.
Under various guises he has infiltrated the lives of the unsuspecting and coerced them into revealing their true selves.
Whether butchering the American national anthem at a rodeo, interviewing neo Nazis or stepping into a cage fight in front of a crowd of screaming rednecks; the comedian has never been afraid to put himself at risk. All in the name of comedy. He even pitched ice-cream gloves to Donald Trump.
Which brings us “very nicely” to Who Is America? Baron Cohen has now set his sights on the minefield that is the state of the American nation and has been secretly filming the show for the past year.
Now, set against howls of derision and calls for the show to be boycotted by those political figures duped by the actor – no mean feat considering Baron Cohen’s public profile – hype-busting Who Is America? once again proves Baron Cohen to be a fearless provocateur at a time when the people in power must be held accountable.
The joy of all Baron Cohen’s work is the ease in which his subjects open up for the cameras and Who Is America? is no different.
laying four characters, unrecognisable under layers of latex, Baron Cohen effortlessly digs the holes for his interviewees to dive into.
The first episode is at times hilarious, bewildering and shocking. Playing an idiotic Trump supporting online “journalist”, a hipster new-age liberal, an ex-con and a self-proclaimed terrorism terminator; Cohen interviews a bewildered Bernie Sanders, has dinner with a privileged white couple, discusses the use of faeces and other bodily fluids as an art medium and films an instructional video teaching three-year old kids about firearms.
The “kinder guardians” programme, especially the ease in which pro-gun lobby congressmen line up to extol the virtues of “uzi-corn”, the gun for young girls, is truly unnerving. This jaw-dropping ending perfectly encapsulating why Who Is America? is such an important show.
Be part of the conversation. Watch it now.
WHO IS AMERICA? is streaming now exclusively on Stan, with new episodes dropping weekly, same day as the U.S.
