While the recognized hallmark of the Borat movies is their outrageousness and insanity, there is one special and unexpected ingredient included in the recently released sequel: heart. Not only does Borat 2 have an arc that sees its titular character come to appreciate his daughter Tutar as a legitimate person, but there is also a wonderfully sweet shared between the Kazakh reporter and a Holocaust survivor named Judith Dim Evans. The latter is one of the best moments in the film, and it's now been revealed that star Sacha Baron Cohen actually broke one of his own traditions in the making of it by letting her know that it was a gag once filming was concluded.
This interesting detail is included in a report from Deadline which primarily focuses on the news that the recent lawsuit filed by Judith Dim Evans' estate (she passed away in the time between when the Borat 2 segment was filmed and the film was released) has been dismissed. According to the trade site, Sacha Baron Cohen felt that he owed respect to the woman he talked with and her friend, and had someone tell her that Borat was played by a Jewish actor who aimed to promote Holocaust education via a horrifically anti-Semitic character.
SPOILER WARNING: The rest of this article contains some spoilers for Borat 2. If you have not yet watched the film, continue at your own risk!
In Borat 2, the eponymous character meets Judith Dim Evans and her friend in a synagogue after having discovered disinformation claiming that the Holocaust didn't happen. In order to try and blend, he dresses in a costume ripped straight out of World War II propaganda, but Evans and the other woman at the temple don't react with anger or outrage. Instead, they recognize that the idiot's terrible behavior stems from fear, and so Evans chooses to try and defeat that fear with love. She embraces him, kisses him, and feeds him soup, and while the big punchline at the end is Borat's jubilation at Evans' revelation that she experienced the Holocaust first hand, that doesn't undercut the beauty of the very real moment.
It's a wonderful scene in Borat 2, and in further demonstration of his commitment to do right by Judith Dim Evans, Sacha Baron Cohen and Amazon are planning significant moves. The star and the streamer are collaborating to have the footage of Evans that didn't make it into the movie included via the X-Ray bonus content on the site, including her discussing her family's experience during World War II. Separately, the filmmakers have been working with the family to make a website dedicated to her memory, and the film itself is actually dedicated to her.
It's a great story from behind the scenes of a great film, and we expect a lot more to emerge in the coming days and weeks, so stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for the latest.
