‘Am I Racist?’ – 2024’s Funniest Comedy

Matt Walsh did it again.

The Daily Wire podcaster dove head first into the most controversial topic in America, the trans debate, and let its proponents reveal themselves via 2022’s “What Is a Woman?”

He deploys similar tactics with “Am I Racist?” The documentary finds Walsh going undercover to expose DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) proponents.

The result? A devastating peek behind the curtain of the Identity Politics racket. “Racist?” doubles as the year’s funniest comedy.

“Woman?” made its interview subjects squirm. This time, it’s the audience that might wriggle in their seats between the laughter.

Walsh plays a version of himself far different than his Daily Wire persona. He’s a straight white male eager to bone up on all things DEI. He’s on a “journey,” and he wants to take us with him.

It’s a scam, of course. The ruse lets him infiltrate DEI meetings with one explicit goal – reveal its rotten underbelly. You need a scam to expose a scam is the not-so-secret premise.

The scheme won’t be easy. He’s become more recognizable following the success of “Woman.”

So he dons glasses, a man bun and geeky glasses. He even snags a DEI certification. And away he goes to de-colonize his White Privilege.

Walsh’s demeanor makes him the anti-Borat, at least on the surface. He’s calm and stoic, so when he’s commandeering the debate few suspect his real intentions.

Like Borat, Walsh’s shtick hopes to reveal something unsettling about his subjects. The 2006 smash “Borat” found Sacha Baron Cohen targeting so-called flyover country. The comedy mostly showed how patient the average American is when dealing with a simpleton.

Walsh’s DEI cover proves more revelatory. And the timing couldn’t be sweeter given the collapse of DEI-style programs in Hollywood, academia and the corporate world.

Cohen is a world-class comic who let his partisan biases get the better of him in “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.” Walsh lacks his Hollywood chops but proves how innately funny he can be in the right situation.

Sure, plenty of zingers can be pre-planned, but deploying them at the precise time is an art unto himself.

‘White Fragility’ author Robin DiAngelo gets tricked into paying reparations to Matt Walsh’s producer in ‘Am I Racist?’ documentary https://t.co/sjIuxL3UMO pic.twitter.com/K5gnzs7bUP

— New York Post (@nypost) September 8, 2024

Some segments feel calculated but still find their mark. Consider Walsh quizzing blue-collar Americans about their White Privilege. Watching these Average Joes and Janes dismiss his faux-DEI rhetoric is a thing of beauty.

One scene showing a black man dismissing racism in today’s world is a double-edged sword. Yes, it’s a positive attitude given the racial progress over the decades. It still threatens to diminishes real racism and leaves “Racist” open to attacks from the Left.

The film quickly recovers its footing, including a killer segment featuring “White Fragility” author Robin DiAngelo.

Buckle in.

Director Justin Folk, re-teaming with Walsh following their “What Is a Woman?” breakthrough, is patient to a fault. He understands the need to build tension, allowing the various set-ups to play out to their natural conclusions.

It renders some sequences a tad pokey, but the payoff is almost always worth the wait.

Satire sears when it’s based on unassailable truths. The cruelty built into DEI should be plain to see, but cultural scolds have prevented many from connecting the dots.

“Am I Racist?” does the heavy lifting for us. It’s hysterical, but the overall message is never far from the surface. We now have permission to laugh at DEI and its devotees, a welcome hangover from a banger of a comedy.

HiT or Miss: “Am I Racist?” does more than expose DEI Nation. It delivers the year’s biggest laughs.

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