The relationship between the real Kazakhstan and the fictitious character Borat has never been a good one, although recently it looked like the two powers were at least trying to mend their relationship. It appears that idea is gone now, as Kazakhstan’s neighbor Russia has not only not allowed Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan a distribution deal for the country, but has actually banned the film.
According to Variety, the film, which was originally slated for a November 30th release in Russia, is the first non-pornographic film to receive the banning treatment. "The film contains material that some viewers may consider offensive to certain nationalities and religions," was the official reason given to local press by Yury Vasyuchkov, a member of the Russian licensing body.
Fox has the right to appeal the decision of the Russian government, although that seems unlikely. As Richard points out at Filmstalker, the banning could give actor Sacha Baron Cohen a chance to take his character straight to the Russian government, demanding a reason for the banning. Does anyone else smell footage for a Borat sequel?
While the Russian banning doesn’t mean the movie won’t run in Kazakhstan, I would suggest it’s pretty unlikely at this point. While the Kazakh government may have tried to let bygones be bygones they have no obligation to show the film, and now they have a precedence to work from in specifically not allowing the movie to be shown. Sorry former Soviet Union countries, looks like you’ll be returning to illegal copies of American films if you want to see Borat any time soon.
