Where To Watch Borat — Is It Streaming?

If you’ve ever yelled “my wiiiiiife!” at a spouse or partner in a vaguely Eastern European accent, you can thank “Borat” for that bit. So where can you watch this 2006 comedy on streaming? As of this writing, the answer is Netflix.

Sacha Baron Cohen’s beloved 2006 film — which bears the genuinely absurd full title “Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” — comes from one of his characters on HBO’s “Da Ali G” show, hapless Kazakh reporter Borat Sagdiyev (Cohen himself). Because the movie I’ll just refer to as “Borat” is a mockumentary that presents its main character, the titular Borat, as a real buffoon who’s interacting with clueless and confused Americans, the filming process was reportedly fraught; rumors have swirled for years that the police were called nearly 100 times while they shot the first film in 2005.

Basically, Cohen’s schtick, such as it is, is that he dresses up as a larger-than-life character — aside from Borat and Ali G, you’re probably at least passingly familiar with Brüno, who got his own film in 2009 — and tries to freak out real people. But surprisingly, he can sometimes create and encourage impactful and real moments despite the sheer absurdity.

Even if you somehow never saw the first “Borat” movie, you’ve heard people reference it millions of times; aside from “my wife,” I can guarantee that some guy at a party shouted “very nice!” in a Borat voice. Here’s what you need to know — or remember, since it’s been a while since the movie was released — about the first “Borat” movie, as well as its surprisingly good 2020 sequel.

The whole conceit of “Borat” that brings the titular idiot from his home country of Kazakhstan to the United States is that Borat is supposed to make a documentary about American culture and bring his knowledge home to his people. (Initially, the Kazakh government was furious about the very concept of this movie, finding it demeaning. Honestly? That’s fair!) With just his loyal producer Azamat Bagatov (Ken Davitian) by his side, Borat heads Stateside in his ill-fitting suit, armed only with his signature mustache and a sunny, positive attitude.

Aside from Sacha Baron Cohen, Davitian, comedian Luenell, and Pamela Anderson (the latter two of whom just play twisted versions of themselves), the people Cohen meets and deals with throughout “Borat” are real people who think this guy is being serious. This includes people from all throughout the United States, because the “plot,” such as it is, of “Borat” is that Borat immediately sees a rerun of “Baywatch” upon landing in New York City and insists that he must marry Anderson, so he and Azamat take a road trip across the nation.

From gay pride parades to a raucous rodeo to an upper-class “supper club” in the South, Borat wreaks havoc wherever he goes … but at least he gets a new wife, Luenell, out of the deal. (No, he does not marry Anderson; after he’s devastating that she’s been with other men before, he gets over that and “tries to kidnap her” in a sequence that is completely, thankfully, staged.) So how in the world did Cohen continue this story 14 years after “Borat” became a sensation?

In 2020, while the world endured the COVID-19 lockdown and the political divide grew wider than ever, Sacha Baron Cohen decided to bless the world with a “Borat” sequel thanks to Amazon … and you know what? I’m glad he did, if for no other reason than Maria Bakalova’s mere presence. In “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime for Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” we reunite with Borat in his home country of Kazakhstan, where he’s just left a gulag (where he was incarcerated for everything he did to embarrass Kazakhstan in the first movie). This time, Borat has been “asked” by Kazakhstan’s real president Nursultan Nazarbayev to deliver a Kazakh treasure, Johnny the Monkey, to Donald Trump as a gift during Trump’s first presidency. (Johnny the Monkey isn’t just the Kazakh Minister of Culture, but he’s also a very successful adult film actor. Go figure.)

Borat returns to the United States with the girl he discovers is his daughter, 15-year-old Tutar (the truly exceptional Bakalova), and the two try to find their way to the United States president. (The monkey doesn’t make it. Tutar eats him on the way there.) From a debutante ball to a truly harrowing visit with a doctor to a very real scene involving former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” is actually kind of incredible, and it may even improve upon its predecessor.

If you’re waiting for “Borat 3,” don’t hold your breath; it’s probably never happening. Still, you can watch “Borat” on Netflix and “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” on Amazon Prime Video.