“One-Joke Movie”

“Hotshots” looks at a movie!

 

The Dictator is Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest film and is not to be confused with the 1940 Charles Chaplin film, The Great Dictator, nor any of the many other films based on Mark Twain’s 1881 story, “The Prince and the Pauper.”

Yes, the story is about a leader of a country who tries to pass himself off as a commoner, either by choice or force, and in this case, force.

Admiral General Aladeen is the dictator of the North African nation of Wadiya, and he has the extravagantly long beard to prove it. He is also so egotistical that he changes the names of many words to “Aladeen” to honor his glory.

He is also so stupid that he doesn’t see the problem in changing the Wadiyan words of both “positive” and “negative” to “Aladeen,” especially when a doctor asks his patient, “Do you want the Aladeen news or the Aladeen news?”

Ben Kingsley plays Tamir, Admiral General Aladeen’s second in command, and your first question should be “What is Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley doing in this piece of crap movie?

Apparently, just as there are no small parts, only small actors, there are no big actors who aren’t willing to prostitute themselves for a small paycheck.

Tamir finds a double for Admiral General Aladeen whose only real job is to be shot in the head, because the people of Wadiya want to live in a democracy, not a dictatorship.

The job requirement for being the double of Admiral General Aladeen is to be stupid, and because Cohen also plays the role of the double, he can act even more stupid than he usually does.

Of course, the story moves to New York City, where Admiral General Aladeen is to give a speech at the United Nations, of course there is a kidnaping plot, of course the admiral general’s beard is cut off while he is being tortured, of course he escapes the kidnaper, and of course the rest of the movie is about the beardless Aladeen trying to exist on his own in New York City.

However, not of course, the movie takes a turn of events when Aladeen meets Zoe, a radical socialist played by Anna Faris, and he takes a job working for her.

The Dictator is a one-joke movie worth two chuckles, tops.

I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”