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'Vassup?' Bruno courts cinema controversy
AFP - Sunday, July 19
LONDON (AFP) - - Bruno, the outrageous gay Austrian fashionista, is proving just as controversial as his British creator Sacha Baron Cohen's previous film character Borat.
The movie "Bruno", which was first released on July 8, has proved a box-office hit in some countries, while being banned in others for its over-the-top gay sex acts.
But the camp television presenter's antics have landed him in hot water with the censors and the unwitting victims hoodwinked by the comedian behind the waxed chest and leather hot pants.
Following the same format as his 2006 movie "Borat", Baron Cohen's character travels to the United States, where a host of famous faces -- some in on the gag -- are sucked into ever more bizarre scenarios.
In his quest for celebrity, Bruno is spotted trying to lure former US presidential candidate Ron Paul into making a sex video, blundering into the Middle East issue, and making out with his assistant at a cage fight.
"Bruno" topped the North American box office in its first week in cinemas, earning 30.4 million dollars.
But not everyone is revelling in Bruno's in-your-face approach -- especially when it comes to sado-masochistic orgies and full frontal nudity.
Ukraine's film censors banned the movie on the grounds that its "unjustified" showing of genitals and homosexual sex could have a damaging effect on moral health.
"The film contains unjustified showing of genital organs and sexual relations and shows homosexual acts and homosexual perversions in an explicitly realist manner," the culture ministry said.
The film also contains "sadistic manifestations which could damage the morality of citizens," it added.
And in a bid to capture the 15- to 18-year-old market that helped make "Borat" a hit, "Bruno" is being cut in Britain and being screened in two versions concurrently, a first in the country.
One minute and 50 seconds is being cut from the 18-rated version to create a 15-rated cut due out on Friday.
The full version topped the British box office in its first weekend of release.
The cut scenes feature the Austrian and his boyfriend engaged in sexual acts, Bruno miming performing a sex act on a dead member of Milli Vanilli while visiting a medium, and couples having sex at a swingers' party.
One cut already made is a scene featuring Michael Jackson's sister La Toya, removed due to fears it was in poor taste following the singer's death.
In the offending scene, Bruno jokes about Michael while he and La Toya eat sushi off the naked bodies of Mexican workmen before he tries to steal Michael's number from her phone.
Some of those duped by the character have threatened legal action.
Borat, a blundering Kazakh television reporter, upset Kazakhstan's authorities over his portrayal of their nationals as backward, quasi-mediaeval racists who drink horse urine.
But as interest in the country rose, Kazakhstan saw the funny side and witnessed an increase in tourism.
"Bruno" is full of references to better-known Austrians: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Adolf Hitler and Josef Fritzl.
The camp fashion presenter says he wants to achieve the Austrian dream: "find a job, get a dungeon and raise a family in it."
British newspapers quoted Emil Brix, Austria's new ambassador to London, as saying that the movie was "totally inappropriate. Everybody should speak up about that. The public will know how to react to this film."
But perhaps learning the lesson from Borat, Vienna has largely kept a low profile over Bruno, with Austrian newspapers debating the merits of the film rather than getting bogged down in Bruno-bashing.
As with "Borat", perhaps the best approach is to grin and bear it.
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