Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan is a 2006 mockumentary comedy film directed by Larry Charles and distributed by 20th Century Fox. It was written, produced by, and stars the British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen in the title role of a fictitious Kazakh journalist travelling through the United States, recording real-life interactions with Americans. It is the second film built around one of Cohen's characters from Da Ali G Show, following Ali G Indahouse, which also featured a cameo by Borat.

Despite a limited initial release in the United States, the satire was a critical and commercial success. Cohen won the 2007 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor: Musical or Comedy, as Borat, while the film was nominated for Best Motion Picture in the same category."Nominations & winners", Hollywood Foreign Press Association, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-03-17. Borat was also nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 79th Academy Awards.

Controversy surrounded the film even before its release. It was denounced for having a protagonist who is sexist, homophobic and antisemitic (although the director, and both producers—including Cohen—are Jewish), and, after the film's release, some cast members spoke against, and even sued, its creators. All Arab countries, except for Lebanon, banned it, and the Russian government discouraged cinemas there from showing it. It was released on DVD 5 March 2007 (a day later in Region 1 countries).

Plot

Borat Sagdiyev (played by Sacha Baron Cohen), a popular Kazakh television personality, leaves his homeland of Kazakhstan for the "Greatest Country in the World," the "US and A" to make a documentary film at the behest of the fictitious Kazakh Ministry of Information. He leaves behind his mother, his wife, Oxana, and the town rapist, and brings along his producer Azamat Bagatov (played by Ken Davitian), and his pet chicken, Buh-Kaw. Much of the movie features unscripted vignettes of Borat interviewing and interacting with Americans, who believe he is a foreigner with little or no understanding of American customs.Marchese, David and Paskin, Willa. What's real in "Borat"? Salon.com, 2006-11-10. Retrieved on 2007-03-07.

While in New York, he sees an episode of Baywatch on television and immediately falls in love with Pamela Anderson. While interviewing a panel of feminists, he learns her name and that she lives in California. Borat is informed via telegram that his violent wife has been violated and killed by a bear. Delighted by the news, he secretly resolves to go to California to make Anderson his new wife. Borat and Azamat were supposed to remain in New York, but Borat justifies the trip to California by telling his skeptical producer that "Pearl Harbor is there. So is Texas." Because Azamat is afraid of a repetition of the September 11, 2001 attacks, which he believes were the work of the Jews, he will not fly there, so Borat takes driving lessons and buys a dilapidated ice-cream truck for the journey.