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:

£5,000,229 (United Kingdom), 10 July 2009, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$30,619,130, 12 July 2009, Wide Release

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

Sacha Baron Cohen: As Straight Dave.

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Goofs

When Brüno takes OJ out of the box at the airport, the subtitle says "That is 13 pounds of black gold." He says "Das ist vierzehn Pfund schwarzes Gold." "Vierzehn" means 14, not 13 ("dreizehn").

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Quotes

Lutz: Because I think that... you're amazing.
Brüno: Am I going to wake up to find you masturbating over me?
Lutz: I promise not to wake you.

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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

In Australia, the uncut version was rated R18+ by the OFLC and was subsequently edited to receive a lower MA15+ rating. According to Universal a few seconds of footage were trimmed in order to receive the new rating. The uncut version was released on DVD/Blu-ray.

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Connections

Featured in Great Movie Mistakes (2010)

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Soundtracks

Divide & Conquer
Written and Performed by Peter Scaturro (as Peter Scaturro)
Courtesy of Howling Entertainment, LLC

User Reviews

'Brüno' Shows You How To Become A Star

The comparison between 'Brüno' and 'Borat' seems inevitable and even though 'Borat' tackles some relevant issues and constantly maintains its sense of very crude, offensive, outlandish and macabre humour 'Brüno' does the same but it's more toned down when compared to 'Borat'. Yet, even though the vulgarity is less in frequency when compared to 'Borat' at its crudest, 'Brüno' tops the aforementioned (hint: a swinging penis that talks). Needless to say, the comedic sequences are over the top (which is to be expected in a movie lead by Sacha Baron Cohen) but I found most of it hilarious, even overall funnier than 'Borat'. At the same time the film touches on some relevant issues for example when Brüno visits the gay converters or when he has parents audition for him to take a photograph with his kid. The movie makes fun of them but it also makes viewers aware of the existence of such people. The execution is well done. Even the score is ticklish at times. Overall, it's a hilarious little film but definitely not everyone's cup of coffee.