July 1, 2009, - 4:19 pm
Sacha Baron Cohen’s Selective Sympathy: Pity on La Toya Jackson, But Not Alan Keyes or Ron Paul
By Debbie Schlussel
As longtime readers know, I was not a fan of Sacha Baron Cohen’s “Borat” movie (read my review). It mostly made fun of well-meaning, good Americans and mocked them. And it was a mockery of America in general . . . by a European whom America has made very wealthy. On the other hand, “Bruno” looks–at least to me–to be slightly better. We’ll see. I’ll be screening it soon and posting my review on July 10th, when the movie debuts.
In the meantime, I can’t help but notice Cohen’s selective sympathy for subjects of his mockery. Cohen had no qualms about punking and p3wning Alan Keyes and Bob Barr in “Borat.” And he does the same to Ron Paul in “Bruno,” the trailers show.
Sacha Baron Cohen Has Sympathy for LaToya, but Not Alan Keyes or Ron Paul
And “Bruno” also included a segment in which LaToya Jackson–arguably weirder than her late brother, Michael Jackson–was the target of Cohen’s jokes and trickery. But that scene has been cut, out of sympathy for the Jackson sister in the wake of the death of her estranged brother.
I find that interesting, given that La Toya Jackson was, in 1993, among those who attacked her brother while he was alive and insisted he was a child molester. I also find it interesting because I doubt Cohen would have any such sympathy for Ron Paul, Alan Keyes, or Bob Barr (and I’m no fan of Islamic terrorist enabler Barr), if they had a death in the family, even a death of a family member whom they publicly denounced and from whom they were long estranged. I doubt he’d change the movie for any of them or show them any lenience.
But, hey, they’re only conservative politicians on the right. Therefore, they don’t deserve any sympathy. And a weirdo hanger-on sister of a dead pop star, well she deserves every sympathy and bit of compassion in the world.
Ah, the selective standards and sympathy of the Hollywood crowd.
I can’t stand anyone who gains laughs by humiliating others. The LaToya Jackson bit was pulled because he feared it would lower his profits and not out of any sense of sympathy. I mean really – does this guy have “sympathy” for anyone?
[J: AMEN! DS]
jeannedb on July 1, 2009 at 5:48 pm