The Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down

On the first day of school, one of my students shared with the class that one of his favorite movies was Patton, starring George C. Scott. I mentioned that I hadn't seen it but that I wanted do, and the student answered incredulously, "You haven't seen Patton? You are NOT a man!" Maybe it was "YOU are not a man!" Or maybe "You are not a MAN!" Regardless, the implication was clear. So I threw a stapler at him. No, actually, I made some remark that included the phrase in the title of this post, and consoled myself with the knowledge that of the 20 or so movie posters displayed in my room, I would guess about seven of them include a character brandishing a gun or samurai sword. That'll show them. Wait, will they think I'm overcompensating? Dammit!

Actually, though, the movie that I hadn't seen that was causing me to question my manhood -- indeed, my qualities as a sentient being on this earth -- was Borat. Somehow, I hadn't seen it, though I'd heard enough references to "hand relief" on my Great Baseball Road Trip this summer to make me feel as though I had. Anyway, my wife and I finally caught up with it on DVD this weekend, and though we didn't laugh as hard as we would have had we saw it in a theater when it was still fresh, it was still pretty damn funny. Because I'm a dork, I was also thinking about how the makers of the film, even though they had their hands full creating a documentary/mockumentary hybrid, still made sure the film adhered to what David Bordwell calls "The Classical Hollywood Cinema" (a pattern that includes an active protagonist who undergoes change after overcoming obstacles, and closure at the end of the film). This was a concept we went over in class Friday, and I kind of rushed through it. I think tomorrow I'll talk about how Borat, despite how ridiculous much of it seems, still conforms to it. For example, the whole pursuit of Pamela Anderson to marry/make a sexy time with her gives our protagonist a goal. His obstacles include his only friend deserting him and taking his money, and finding out that Pamela is not, in fact, a maiden. Toward the end of the movie Borat even says he has changed, in part because of his "awakening" at a Pentecostal camp meeting (I thought of The Blues Brothers) here. Lastly, all loose ends are tied up, as Borat lives happily ever after with the prostitute he met in America. Anyway, as revolutionary as the movie was in terms of the outrageousness and nature of its humor, I wonder if part of its popularity is due to it giving the audience a story it was already familiar with -- the underdog coming out on top.