Two fraternity brothers from the University of South Carolina who have filed the first “'Borat' remorse” lawsuit will somehow have to show that a reasonable viewer of the hit "mockumentary" would take their racist remarks at face value.

The complaint does not name the plaintiffs, but they are part of a trio of Chi Psi frat brothers who, in one segment of the movie, pick up the hitchhiking title character Borat Sagdiyev (played by comic Sacha Baron Cohen) in their RV and share a few beers with him. One reviewer described them as “the very worst of beer-besotted American youth.”

In this fame-besotted age, some might be thrilled to be part of the No. 1 box office attraction in the country. Not so the Chi Psi boys, who claim they only appeared in “Borat” because the producers assured them the film would not be shown in the U.S. and plied them with alcohol before they signed the release agreement.

The makers of “Borat,” the plaintiffs also allege, invaded their privacy by placing them in a false light. The film, they say, portrayed them “in a manner that falsely attributed to Plaintiffs certain stereotypical views of minorities.”

To prevail on the false light claim, the plaintiffs must show that a reasonable viewer would take their contribution to “Borat” at face value and conclude they are racists. But some viewers of the film, which blurs the boundary between illusion and reality, have not taken the frat boys' remarks literally.

“You sense the subjects playing to the camera,” one said in an Internet forum.

Of course, there's always the possibility that the plaintiffs did drunkenly reveal something of their real selves on camera -- sort of like Mel Gibson during his DUI bust. As one reviewer noted, "At his best, Borat is able to get people to let it all out."

Another problem with the case is that, even if the allegations are true, the plaintiffs may not be able to prove they suffered an injury. They claim, among other things, “loss of reputation,” but frat brothers, the inspiration for “Animal House,” don't exactly have a reputation as Boy Scouts to begin with.

Chi Psi brother David Corcoran, who appeared in “Borat” but has not filed suit, told ABC News he was not upset with the film, saying he had a “fun time.”

Life, though, seems to have imitated art in the complaint, which features several examples of Borat-ian English. Among them:

• “People are tricked in making fools out of themselves.”

• “Where one falls on that line depends largely one's tolerance for incest and penis jokes.”

• “After a while of heavy drinking by the Plaintiffs ...”

 

By Matthew Heller
11/11/06