'If I See Borat, I Will Kill Him With My Own Hands' !!!!!!!

[Daanyeer]

Source: abcnews.go.com
November 17, 2006 Author: By LAMA HASAN

.................."There is no point in suing, nothing will change,'' said one of the neighbors who claimed that Cohen's production company called her telling her not to waste time contacting a lawyer because they ''won't get anything."

GLOD, Romania, Nov. 17, 2006— - We went in search of the characters featured in the Borat film and were shooed away with brooms. We tried gettting to the bottom of arguably the most offensive movie in theaters this year and people told us they'd like to kill the star, comedian Sacha Baron Cohen -- barring that, they're going to sue him!

The Romanian village of Glod stands in for Khazakistan in the film, "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan." Glod literally means mud, and that's only some of what its people would like to sling at Cohen and his production company. Glod is actually in Romania, about 85 miles from the capital Bucharest, and it looks like something out the Middle Ages.

About 1400 people live here and they are dirt poor. The air is rancid, probably from the fires that burn on the outskirts of the village. The sight of old women carrying wood becomes common and as does the manure that litters the narrow roads. The majority of villagers live off welfare benefits. Some try to make a living by selling their produce including fruits and mushrooms while others sell woven baskets and slabs of stone.

"These people will do anything for money, of course they were going to take part in it," said the deputy mayor of thef five town region where the film was shot. "They thought they were earning money for not doing a lot of work.''

Can you blame them? Being in a movie is fun. Unless of course you are portrayed as a rapist, hooker or prostitute. Most people here refused to talk to us unless we paid them. There were a couple of screaming matches between our local fixers and the villagers who initially thought we were shooting a similar movie.

Sacha Cohen's production company did provide Glod's school with 2 computers, one television, a photocopier and some pencils. But the story of this unbelievably poor place, of how people here were tricked was too awful not to attract attention.

Our guide for the day was Local Councillor Nicolae Staicu who told us the villagers were approached by a lawyer and surprise... ABC News has learned that a German lawyer named Michael Witte will be filing suit in the U.S. next week against Sasha Baron Cohen and 20th Century Fox, which produced the movie. Witte made headlines six years ago when he helped win Holocaust victims compensation from the German government and industry. So maybe its not all about the money.

"We were mocked and should have made much more money,'' said Councillor Staicu who has joined with the son of a character in the film to rally the town against the Hollywood studio.

Spiridon Ciorbea is portrayed as the local mechanic who doubles as an abortionist in the movie. We found him welding a green iron gate. He told us he got $70 for his role in the movie and had no idea what his cameo role was in Cohen's fictional road trip. ''Yes, I fix cars and I'm a welder but I know nothing about abortions. How can I do anything like that with these hands that are full of scars?'' The grandfather of 11 children asked ''if Borat will come back to face him. If he does, I will hit him over the head with this hammer.'' With a wide smile, teeth brimming with gold he said ''if a law suit goes ahead, I will sue.''

"I was stunned, how could he show my father in such a way?'' And he has a message for Cohen ''If I see Borat, I will kill him with my own hands.'' said Ciorbea's son, Ion.

In the same vicinity Paulina Solomon showed us her contribution to the movie which earned her $100. Her old blue Dacia car served as Borat's horse drawn vehicle. ''They took it to Bucharest and when they bought it back the engine was full of sand. I had to pay $500 to get it fixed. I want my money back.''

And then there is the man who owns "Borat's house." It's more like a shack, but no we didn't see a cow in the living room. Gherorghe Luca owns the house. He was so uninterested in talking to us that he began screaming. We were of course invading his town, so we don't really blame him. Mr. Luca's wife shooed us away with a broom.

"There is no point in suing, nothing will change,'' said one of the neighbors who claimed that Cohen's production company called her telling her not to waste time contacting a lawyer because they ''won't get anything."

Greg Brilliant spokesperson for 20th Century Fox defended the behavior of the film production team in Glod, in a phone interview with ABC News. He said that the villagers involved, "were extras that were hired to be in a movie, they were paid to do that. Nobody was made fun of." He went on to say that the movie, "is a satire that has a message of tolerance. It exposes bigotry and racism." He also highlighted Sascha Baron Cohen's generosity to the village when in donating $10,000.

Not everyone is angry at the comedian with the mustache. Luca Irina, who also goes by the name of Chocolata, blurted out ''Borat is the best, he is funny.'' She showed us the dance moves that earned her a small role in the movie. Irina also happens to be the only person in Glod who has seen the movie.