If Colin find the depiction of gays in Bruno a concern because it might incite homophobia I have to wonder what he thinks of these depictions of gay and lesbian people "http://www.mardigras.org.au/item.cfm?id=394&nav=Mardi Gras08&sub=Parade" - copy and paste between the quotes. runner don't go there.

There might be reasons why it's Ok for gay and lesbian's to portray themeslves that way but not Ok for Sasha but they don't seem to be the reasons in this article.

R0bert

runner:

Aw gee - my Mac dictionary gives the following definitions of sad. Back to the drawing board for you, or out with the evidence. I must say though, I sometimes feel a little heavy at having failed to rise, so I'll give you one point, though it's a fluke.

Bye lovey.

Sad
1 feeling or showing sorrow; unhappy : I was sad and subdued | they looked at her with sad, anxious faces.
• causing or characterized by sorrow or regret; unfortunate and regrettable : he told her the sad story of his life | a sad day for us all.
2 informal pathetically inadequate or unfashionable : somebody's priorities are pretty sad.
3 (of dough) heavy through having failed to rise.

'The rednecks go on being rednecks, and the world is presented as a mixture of mutually uncomprehending groups between whom no real contact or discussion is possible.'

Hmmmm.... Sounds like a typical day on an OLO gender thread.

[Cornflower] '...let's face it, with the all-pervasive, intrusive and humourless PC that abounds in the West, safety valves like Bruno's comedy are in short supply. So what about giving the thought police a day off?'

What’s this? I do believe the poor old Cornpuff is trapped in a Howard-era Murdoch opinion piece, circa 1999.

I thought cracks about ‘PC thought police’ (aka anything to the left of Atilla the Hun) went out with dial-up internet connections and Ikea lounge suites.

I must confess that I have not read this article, however I did see the movie and it is quite simply a load of crap!

An astonishing lack of humour from the author.

The reason the absurd caricature of Bruno is funny is because the subworld of backward rednecks think it's accurate. It's like Kath & Kim: if you don't get the joke, it's because you ARE the joke.

"Bruno: A comic genius or a witless git?
you be the judge," writes Jim Schembri in
his review of the film for - The Age, July 10th, 2009.

According to Schembri - "Eliciting extreme reactions
by disgusting people does not require skill...
Behave abnoxiously in front of anybody for long enough,
and you'll eventually get a reaction for your film..."

I agree that Bruno is hardly 'comfortable viewing.'
However Sacha Baron Cohen likes to push the boundaries
and see how far we allow him to take his antics.
The film is meant to be provocative and its not for
the faint-hearted. There were moments in it however,
that were extremely funny - but I have to confess it
did get a bit tedious - a joke repeated over and over
again tires fast. And, I couldn't help wondering -
is Cohen lampooning homophobia or perpetuating it?

Jim Schembri's summation gives one pause for thought:

"Precisely where one places Sacha Baron Cohen in the
pantheon of comedy greats depends, to a large extent,
on whether one considers the waving of a semi-erect
penis in front of a camera as the work of comic genius."