Brüno (2009)

Flamboyant and gay Austrian Brüno looks for new fame in America.

Director:

Larry Charles

Writers:

Sacha Baron Cohen (screenplay), Anthony Hines (screenplay)

Stars:

Sacha Baron Cohen, Gustaf Hammarsten, Clifford Bañagale

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sacha Baron Cohen	...	Brüno
Gustaf Hammarsten	...	Lutz
Clifford Bañagale	...	Diesel
Chibundu Orukwowu	...	O.J.
Chigozie Orukwowu	...	O.J.
Josh Meyers	...	Kookus
Toby Holguin	...	Mexican Gardener #1 (as Toby Hoguin)
Robert Huerta	...	Mexican Gardener #2
Gilbert Rosales	...	Mexican Gardener #3
Thomas Rosales Jr.	...	Mexican Gardener #4
Marco Xavier	...	Mexican Gardener #5
Bono	...	Himself - 'Dove of Peace'
Chris Martin	...	Himself - 'Dove of Peace'
Elton John	...	Himself - 'Dove of Peace'
Slash	...	Himself - 'Dove of Peace'

Storyline

Brüno is a gay Austrian fashion guru. He has his own fashion based television show, Funkyzeit, the most popular German-language show of its kind outside of Germany. After he disgraces himself in front of his Funkyzeit fan base, he is ruined in German speaking Europe. He decides that in his quest for worldwide fame, he will move to Los Angeles and reinvent himself. Accompanying him to the US is Lutz, his former assistant's assistant. Lutz is the only person left in his circle that still believes in Brüno's greatness. Brüno goes through one reinvention of himself after another, ultimately straying to areas far removed from his own self. Perhaps when Brüno finds an activity that he truly does love, he will also find that über-fame he so desperately desires.

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Plot Keywords:

social satire | mockumentary | fame | austrian | vicarious embarrassment | 

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Taglines:

Borat was so 2006

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive strong and crude sexual content, graphic nudity and language

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English German

Release Date:

10 July 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Brüno: Delicious Journeys Through America for the Purpose of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable in the Presence of a Gay Foreigner in a Mesh T-Shirt

Filming Locations:

1880 SW Gage Blvd, Topeka, Kansas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$42,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$30,619,130, 12 July 2009

Gross USA:

$60,054,530

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$138,805,831

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Media Rights Capital (MRC), Everyman Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After the sudden unexpected death of Michael Jackson, the movie was re-edited at the last minute to remove references to Brüno (Sacha Baron Cohen) trying to get tickets to a Michael Jackson concert.

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Goofs

While doing an audition in an office the hat on the door behind Bruno keeps changing position.

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Quotes

Brüno: [standing naked outside of tent] Donny, let me in your tent. A bear stole all of my clothes... except for these condoms.

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Crazy Credits

The U in the Universal logo is spelled with an umlaut (Ü) like the movie's title.

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Alternate Versions

The movie's original cut was rated 18 by the BBFC for the UK, and released in that form. The movie was then edited down by two minutes to secure a 15 certificate, and re-released two weeks later as "Brüno: Snipped - The 15-Rated Version". Both versions were shown in parallel, with the edited version targeting the more-lucrative teenage audience.

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Connections

References Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009)

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Soundtracks

Raver
Written by Sjoerd Janssen and Wouter Janssen
Performed by Showtek
Courtesy of Dutch Master Works

User Reviews

Underwhelming

I just saw it and I was a bit let down. I am gay, I love Cohen, and was ready to laugh. But the problem was he didn't expose any under-the-surface bigotry like he did in Borat. He overdid his "gayness" to such a violent extreme that he forced reactions out of people, some of whom are probably plenty openminded. You ended feeling sorry for these people.

Especially Ron Paul, who out of all the politicians Cohen could have chosen, deserved it the least. He's no champion of gay rights, but he is certainly not an enemy either and he reacted like any normal person would in that nightmarish situation. There were also some genuine bigots in the film, but Cohen goes to such an extreme to provoke them, by the time it gets to that point, who cares?

There were funny moments, of course, Cohen is a funny man, but this movie lacks the bite Borat had. This was just an exercise in bad taste (which is fine, if that's what you're looking for).