The Dictator: Critic Reviews

What's shocking is the movie's finale, in which Baron Cohen -- as usual, fully committed to his character -- delivers a diatribe that's a satirical version of Charlie Chaplin's famous speech in The Great Dictator.

It doesn't expose stupidity. That's what Cohen has done absolutely wonderfully in the past with his other characters. Now he's just acting stupid, with only some funny results.

By this time, even Eve Ensler probably would support a movie and TV comedy moratorium on the use of the word 'vagina.'

The danger for Baron Cohen is having made his name as a confrontational comedian but delivering something that, while occasionally provocative, feels too conventional.

Both the laughter and the satire had crawled off and quietly died.

A weapon of mass derision.

The biggest problem with the movie is that it has all these crazy dictator jokes, which are funny but when it tries to be a movie, it fails miserably. You don't buy any of it.

the movie feels lazy and middlebrow, without even the mockumentary format of Borat to disguise things.

As a supporting actor Cohen is okay, but as the star of his vanity projects he is excruciating

While acknowledging that some of the film's individual scenes are quite funny, the overarching story needed work.

Borat cut deep, The Dictator couldn't incise bread.

This is basically Coming to America with more gross-out gags.

Baron Cohen is as always never less than fully immersed into his character, and Aladeen's antics are often quite hilarious, most brashly and crudely so.

The whole love story shackles the movie, forcing it to ultimately and ruinously fit into the strict confines of the rom-com genre, whereas Cohen has always been at his best, like any rubber chicken, when allowed to be free range.

He very lovingly pokes fun at us like a favorite uncle who wants you to pull his finger.

Where most of Cohen's films exploit non-actors falling for his ruse, this dictator has been banished to one of those (regrettable and forgettable) SNL movies...

You would strain to identify The Dictator as a clever movie. But it doesn't quite work as a big dumb movie either.

All of the best jokes were given away in the trailer.

As with Mel Brooks, it's the good scenes and lines that stick in the mind rather than the misfires.

Cohen has added something to the picture that prevents it from completely succeeding: a plot.

It's funny enough, even hilarious at times, but is it really being incisive and intelligently manipulative, or is it just ignorant, offensive drivel? I can't tell.