The Dictator

The Dictator DVD Release
What to Rent

What to Rent: New DVDs This Week

Chimpanzee and Freelancers are also available on DVD this week.
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Chimpanzee and Freelancers are also available on DVD this week.

The Dictator

Sacha Baron Cohen plays Admiral General Aladeen, the prejudiced leader of a fictional oppressive country, Wadiya, in this comedy. He comes to visit the United States, and after one of his advisers (Ben Kingsley) betrays him, he assumes a new identity and falls for a hippie shop owner (Anna Faris). Borat director Larry Charles reteamed with Cohen for this offensive yet surprisingly funny comedy in the same vein of Cohen's previous character-driven movies. DVD extras include both unrated and theatrical versions of the film, an ultraviolet copy, a Larry King interview with General Aladeen, and deleted and extended scenes.

58%


Bernie

Jack Black stars as Bernie, a strange funeral assistant who befriends a wealthy widow (Shirley MacLaine) in rural Texas. A church choir singer and a Sunday school teacher, Bernie's an upstanding member of the community, so it's particularly shocking when the town finds out that his widow friend has been murdered and Bernie is the prime suspect. Matthew McConaughey also stars in the slightly off-kilter dramedy from director Richard Linklater. The DVD comes with deleted scenes and three featurettes.

91%


One more release when you read more

Snow White and the Huntsman Wins Box Office
Box Office

Snow White Is the Fairest of Them All at the Box Office

Snow White and the Huntsman topped the box office this weekend, opening with $56.3 million.
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Snow White and the Huntsman topped the box office this weekend, opening with $56.3 million. Last week's number one flick, Men in Black 3, dropped to second place with $29.3 million, followed by The Avengers with $20.2 million. Battleship came in fourth with $4.8 million, and The Dictator rounded out the top five with $4.7 million.

Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures

Men in Black Wins Box Office
Movies

Men in Black 3 Defeats The Avengers at the Box Office

Raking in $55 million this weekend, Men in Black 3 managed to finally bring down box office behemoth The Avengers, which took second place with $37 million.
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Raking in $55 million this weekend, Men in Black 3 managed to finally bring down box office behemoth The Avengers, which took second place with $37 million. Battleship came in third with $10.8 million in its second week in theaters, followed by The Dictator, which earned $9.6 million. The newly released Chernobyl Diaries came in fifth with $8 million.

Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures

The Avengers Beats Battleship at Box Office
Box Office

The Avengers Easily Sinks Battleship in a Box Office Showdown

For the third week in a row, The Avengers has taken the top spot at the box office.
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For the third week in a row, The Avengers has taken the top spot at the box office. The Marvel superhero flick earned $55.1 million this weekend, bringing its total gross to an impressive $457 million. New releases Battleship and The Dictator trailed behind, with $25.3 million and $17.4 million, respectively. Johnny Depp's vampire revival Dark Shadows came in fourth in its second week in theaters, taking in $12.8, and the Jennifer Lopez ensemble comedy What to Expect When You're Expecting rounded out the top five with $10.5 million in its first weekend.

Photo courtesy of Walt Disney Studios

The Dictator Movie Review
Comedies

The Dictator: Ruled by Tasteless but Funny Jokes

Full disclosure: I laughed out loud many times during The Dictator, knowing full well that I should have been offended instead.
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Full disclosure: I laughed out loud many times during The Dictator, knowing full well that I should have been offended instead. But what you see is what you get when it comes to Sacha Baron Cohen, and after movies like Bruno and Borat, you already know whether you'll be able to find humor in film about a horrifyingly ignorant world leader who's as naive, racist, and prejudiced as they come.

I know that sounds hard to swallow, but there is a big difference between The Dictator and Cohen's previous work: this time, it doesn't even feel remotely real. Whereas Borat and Bruno are made to taunt and embarrass what appear to be unsuspecting, everyday people, there's no mistaking The Dictator for what it is: a total farce that comes complete with actors you've seen before. It may sound obvious, but having Cohen's Aladeen interact with the likes of Ben Kingsley, Anna Faris, and John C. Reilly makes the whole story easier to digest — and much easier to laugh at in spite of yourself.

To see what else I enjoyed about The Dictator, just read more

Battleship Movie Pictures
Battleship

Movie Sneak Peek: Battleship, The Dictator, What to Expect When You're Expecting

Moviegoers will have quite a few choices this weekend at the theater.
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Moviegoers will have quite a few choices this weekend at the theater. The blockbuster aliens-meets-navy destruction flick Battleship is opening, along with the Sacha Baron Cohen comedy The Dictator and ensemble comedy What to Expect When You're Expecting. Either way, it looks like a whole lot of Brooklyn Decker action. Check out all the pics from the flicks before heading out to theaters on Friday!

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Sacha Baron Cohen The Dictator London Premiere Pictures
Isla Fisher

Sacha Baron Cohen Joins Mom-to-Be Anna Faris at The Dictator's Debut

Sacha Baron Cohen attended this evening's London premiere of The Dictator in character as the ruthless, but comical leader he plays in the movie.
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Sacha Baron Cohen attended this evening's London premiere of The Dictator in character as the ruthless, but comical leader he plays in the movie. Sacha has been keeping up the act as his alter ego Admiral General Aladeen while doing press for his latest film, and even stopped by Saturday Night Live in NYC over the weekend to crack a few jokes during "Weekend Update." Sacha's wife Isla Fisher and his costar Anna Faris also stepped out for the debut of the project. It's an especially major month for Anna. The Dictator hits theaters this weekend, and Anna and her husband Chris Pratt are expecting their first child. The duo announced the happy news earlier this week and said the baby is due this Fall.

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May 2012 Movie Releases
Movies

Which May Release Are You Most Excited to See?

Welcome to a new month!
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Welcome to a new month! May reminds us that we haven't bought anything for Mother's Day yet, and the end of April showers presumably brings flowers, but mostly May is awesome because it means Summer movie season has arrived. All right, if you want to be a stickler about it, Summer actually starts in June, but with blockbusters like The Avengers, Battleship, and Men in Black III opening this month, as far as we're concerned, Summer is in the building. Check out the soon-to-be-released titles and let us know which one you're most looking forward to!

The Dictator Trailer Starring Sacha Baron Cohen
Movie Trailers

The Dictator Trailer: Sacha Baron Cohen Tries to Make Oppression Funny

Sacha Baron Cohen may have recently shown up in family film Hugo, but for The Dictator, he's going for more grown-up subject matter.
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Sacha Baron Cohen may have recently shown up in family film Hugo, but for The Dictator, he's going for more grown-up subject matter. In the political satire, Cohen plays the title character, a Saddam Hussein-like world leader who comes to America from his country, which he has been terrorizing for years. The film is a reunion for Cohen and Larry Charles, who directed Bruno and Borat, and though I love their collaborations, it feels like they're borrowing from their older material here. With his heavy accent and penchant for prostitutes, Cohen's tyrant seems a lot like Borat in a position of power.

While I have always loved Cohen's outrageous characters, the humor isn't as offensive as I was expecting, nor is it as funny; the Kardashian jokes just feel too easy, especially for the man who created characters like Ali G. Still, the preview is so brief I'm hoping that all the no-holds-barred humor is in the film, so check it out after the jump.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Anna Faris on The Dictator Set in NYC
Sacha Baron Cohen

Anna Faris Debuts a Brunette Pixie Cut and Scoots Along With Sacha Baron Cohen on The Dictator Set

Sacha Baron Cohen hitched a ride with his costar Anna Faris during another silly day on the set of The Dictator yesterday in NYC.
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Sacha Baron Cohen and Anna Faris on The Dictator Set in NYC

Sacha Baron Cohen hitched a ride with his costar Anna Faris during another silly day on the set of The Dictator yesterday in NYC. Anna Faris has brown hair cut into a super-short crop for the new role, though the daring 'do may just be a wig. Sacha, for his part, looked a little worse for wear in a ripped sweater as they rode along together on the blue Vespa. Sacha plays dual roles in the movie as a foreign tyrant and the man hired to impersonate him. He has been hard at work on the film this month in the Big Apple and sported some short shorts a couple of weeks ago for a funny scene. When Sacha's not on camera, he's been hanging out at home with his wife, Isla Fisher, and their two daughters, Olive and Elula.

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