BABEL - the movie. Have we had a thread about it yet?

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Saw it last night. I enjoyed it. Nice plot twists and an interesting take on things. Reminded me a little of Traffic for some reason...

― wogan lenin (dog latin), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:26 (eighteen years ago)

I thought it wasn't that good. It tried to be more deep than it actually was; the supposed unifying theme of miscommunication was left pretty much undeveloped. The best story was the Japanese one, which had little to do with the rest of the film, the "link" between it and the others was totally artificial.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:28 (eighteen years ago)

On the positive side, it didn't have the totally pointless narrative gimmickry of 21 Grams.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:29 (eighteen years ago)

an interesting take on things

Can you be more specific?

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:31 (eighteen years ago)

sux

― jhoshea (scoopsnoodle), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:32 (eighteen years ago)

It's ALL CONNECTED MAAN Babel/21 Grams/Amores Perros (the latter was OK once, I guess) Thread

― the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:35 (eighteen years ago)

The worst part was the scenes between Pitt and Blanchett, just lots of teary-eyed staring, and it was as if their marital problems were just as important as other all the other suffering in the film. Then again, maybe the film tried to structurally emphasize the theme that Americans are more important than anyone else.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:37 (eighteen years ago)

I actually enjoyed it as three unrelated film, without worrying too much about whether there was supposed to be some profound connection among the narratives. The actual connections between the characters (e.g., father in Japan gave the gun to the Moroccan dude) was tenuous enough to remind me of David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas -- which I think I enjoyed for similar reasons.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:37 (eighteen years ago)

On the positive side, it didn't have the totally pointless narrative gimmickry of 21 Grams.

I hated that film

― Tom D. (Dada), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:38 (eighteen years ago)

Babel minus Brad Pitt/Cate Blanchett plot (or possibly with better more believable actors in their roles) = very interesting film. The actual Babel = about 45 minutes too long.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:41 (eighteen years ago)

Richard Griffiths and Brenda Blethyn maybe. Hang on a minute...they're not *hott*.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:44 (eighteen years ago)

Koji Yakusho was criminally underused in the film. Why hire such a great actor and then use him only in two scenes? The actor playing his daughter was brilliant anyway. Maybe they should've made a full-length film just out of her story?

Also, the Mexican story went a bit too far, it didn't feel credible anymore, more like someone quite purposefully setting up a tragedy.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:48 (eighteen years ago)

"Maybe they should've made a full-length film just out of her story?"

They definitely could have. It's easily the best story of the four.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:51 (eighteen years ago)

I agree with that last point, Tuomas, but I also liked soaking up the atmosphere of the Mexican wedding.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:51 (eighteen years ago)

They could've easily have the women get arrested on the border and then get deported because she took the kids out of the country, the whole car chase and desert part was over the top.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:53 (eighteen years ago)

Yeah, how much you wanna bet Barraza's Oscar clip is her stumbling around in the desert in that dress, muttering to herself?

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:55 (eighteen years ago)

(xpost)It was, but I think even that sequence felt unrealer because it occurred in a Brad Pitt movie.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:56 (eighteen years ago)

I keep imaging the wonders Paul Haggis could have injected into Blood Diamond.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:56 (eighteen years ago)

Yeah WTF I didn't realize anyone liked Blood Diamond until I saw those nominations.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:58 (eighteen years ago)

Hollywood is a liberal town, remember.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 16:59 (eighteen years ago)

Thanks, Rush.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:00 (eighteen years ago)

BD (and possibly Babel) are Academy Medicine movies -- they HAVE to like them.

I don't particularly want to see this, but Brad Pitt can't win with some ppl, can he? Maybe instead of Fight Club and A River Runs Through It he should stick to inert low-budget stuff like Half Nelson for some cred.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:01 (eighteen years ago)

blood diamond was better than this piece

― jhoshea (scoopsnoodle), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:01 (eighteen years ago)

"I don't particularly want to see this, but Brad Pitt can't win with some ppl, can he?"

No, not with me.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:03 (eighteen years ago)

Brad Pitt can win with me if he changes his name to "Dirk Pitt."

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:05 (eighteen years ago)

Actually that's not true, he's good enough in light fare or roles where he has to be funny (except that awful movie with Julia Roberts, The Mexican? I can't remember.) But he's a piss poor serious actor in my opinion.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:07 (eighteen years ago)

In Thelma & Louise his nipples were intensely charismatic. For light comic fare I prefer Matthew McConaughey.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:09 (eighteen years ago)

was Tyler Durden "serious"? He was great.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:13 (eighteen years ago)

I hated that movie.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:16 (eighteen years ago)

The best scenes were the ones with the Morrocan boys, they were great little actors. Otherwise pretty shit, see my comments on the other thread. Agreed the Pitt/Blanchett segments are the worst - he looks worried, she says 'ow' a lot.

― chap (chap), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:30 (eighteen years ago)

the worst was after sitting through 3 hours of ponderous bullshit the screen fades to black and up comes the dedication thanking his children for getting him through the darkest nights. dude we don't care who gets you through the darkest nights - we hate you!

― jhoshea (scoopsnoodle), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 17:33 (eighteen years ago)

GGI's third film on the trot that is EXACTLY THE SAME; tripartite interlocking narrative? Check. Non-chronological editing? Check. Grainy cinema-verite-style sub-standard film-stock for emotional distance/resonance? Check. Two+ hours of unremitting human misery? Check.

It's very good at what it does, but good grief, what it does is miserable.

I never want to see another GGI film again, the miserable fuck. Unless he makes an animation about penguins.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 23:14 (eighteen years ago)

As I said on the other thread:

I tend to like this sort of thing but am growing weary of it, since it's pretty much Arriaga's only trick. Innaritu has hinted that he won't be working with Arriaga in the future (these three films having constituted a trilogy for him), which is probably good news, since I think he's a talented director otherwise.

-- jaymc (jmcunnin...), January 23rd, 2007 12:27 PM. (jaymc) (later) (link)

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 23:19 (eighteen years ago)

why did this receive the oscars nod when Children of Men was prety much ignored? i've not seen this but i liked 21 grammes FWIW.

― jed_ (jed), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 23:25 (eighteen years ago)

It annoys me how poorly CoM has done in the Oscar noms, particularly that it didn't get a nod for Art Direction.

― chap (chap), Wednesday, 24 January 2007 23:29 (eighteen years ago)

Yeah, in the cold light of morning it's more to do with Arriaga than GGI. I want to see GGI do something totally and utterly different, see him flex his muscles, cos at the moment I don't think he's got half the range, wit or subtlety of Cuaron, or the wonder of Del Toro.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 25 January 2007 08:22 (eighteen years ago)

benicio del toro is a director now?

― the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Thursday, 25 January 2007 09:20 (eighteen years ago)

Ha and indeed ha.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 25 January 2007 10:21 (eighteen years ago)

The Benicio del Toro character (violent, deeply repressed, recovering addict using born-again Christianity to fill his voids) in '21 Grams' is the only character/thread in any of Alejandro González Iñárritu's movies with any real weight, I think.

I loved the Mexican wedding stuff in 'Babel,' and I liked a lot of Gael Garcia Bernal's character (the look on Brad Pitt's kid's face when he rips the chicken's head off was PRICELESS, and said more about cultural differences than ANYTHING else in the film), though Gael's action sequence was tough to swallow, and the resultant desert scenes were equally preposterous.

On a technical level, the movie really is amazing - It's very frustrating to have another filmmaker with so many tools at his disposal who is married to these really belabored scripts. (aka the antithesis of 'Children of Men').

Also, I thought Brad Pitt was actually very good, despite the distracting, bizarrely theatrical, pancake make-up - I think the most emotional moment in the movie for me might have been Pitt trying to give the tour guide the cash from his wallet when the helicopter was taking off and the guy refusing it.

Finally, it would appear that Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett's daughter was played by Dakota Fanning's younger sister. THERE IS ANOTHER ONE.

― Tiki Theater Xymposium (Bent Over at the Arclight), Thursday, 25 January 2007 11:31 (eighteen years ago)

So it WASN'T the girl from War of the Worlds?

The chicken head thing was fucking awesome, aye.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 25 January 2007 11:39 (eighteen years ago)

Are you saying CoM is great script, shame about the direction? Because that sounds like crazy talk.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 25 January 2007 11:45 (eighteen years ago)

i loved this movie. i got the soundtrack in the post today and am listening to it right now. i am generally not such a fan of soundtracks, but this one is really pretty great. the music from such different continents somehow fits together really well.

― gem (trisk), Thursday, 25 January 2007 11:46 (eighteen years ago)

Are you saying CoM is great script, shame about the direction? Because that sounds like crazy talk.

No, no, I phrased that terribly... I think 'Children of Men' is an example of a great director with incredible technical abilities who knows what to do with a great script.

The score was by Gustavo Santaolalla, who did the score for 'Brokeback Mountain,' among many others. I agree, it was a great score - he manages to squeeze some pretty emotional stuff out of that 'plucking an acoustic string every once in a while' approach (which I don't mean as criticism; I really think he is good).

― Tiki Theater Xymposium (Bent Over at the Arclight), Thursday, 25 January 2007 11:55 (eighteen years ago)

I liked it. Then again I'm generally never a big admirer of plots - I don't care for them as much as I care for technique and there's lots to love. I think the American couple were supposed to be pretty loathable - wasn't that the idea? The unsympathetic reaction of the rest of the tourbus was classic too.

It did keep me guessing. I thought the Japanese girl was going to OD, or jump off the balcony which would have spoilt it. I thought the Moroccan kids (who were brilliant) were going to shoot each other or something, which would have spoilt it. I thought Santiago was going to crash his car and killed the kids, or get caught with a gun or something which would have spoilt it (I don't see why this whole bit was preposterous - They could've easily have the women get arrested on the border and then get deported because she took the kids out of the country, the whole car chase and desert part was over the top. She could have received a court summons through the post, but that wouldn't have been a very good film now would it?

Gem, I thought the soundtrack was awesome too. Where else would you hear J-Pop, Mexican wedding music and Morrocan folk music in one sitting?

― wogan lenin (dog latin), Thursday, 25 January 2007 13:10 (eighteen years ago)

- They could've easily have the women get arrested on the border and then get deported because she took the kids out of the country, the whole car chase and desert part was over the top. She could have received a court summons through the post, but that wouldn't have been a very good film now would it?

Well, yeah, but because the movie seemed to be aiming for realism, I thought something like that would've been sufficiently dramatic yet credible, instead of the melodramatic route it took.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Thursday, 25 January 2007 14:12 (eighteen years ago)

nah...

― wogan lenin (dog latin), Thursday, 25 January 2007 14:20 (eighteen years ago)

Yes.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Thursday, 25 January 2007 14:21 (eighteen years ago)

Ugh. Just watched it. González Iñárritu gets worse with every movie. This is contrived, aimless drivel. The photography is its only redeeming quality.

― Turangalila (Salvador), Sunday, 4 February 2007 06:43 (eighteen years ago)

i read this as BABAR: the movie and was totally disappointed.

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Sunday, 4 February 2007 06:59 (eighteen years ago)

three weeks pass...

My wife and I just watched this and, apart from a mild anticipation that things were gonna tie together on the way to some sort of climax, there was nothing really compelling over the last hour and a half.

Just a couple of minutes ago, I was channel surfing and saw about ten minutes of [ForestGump[/i], one of the worst movies I've ever seen. Babel isn't close to being THAT bad, but if this piece of shit wins Best Picture tomorrow after last year's Crash nonsense, I'm starting my own academy!

― peepee, Sunday, 25 February 2007 04:05 (eighteen years ago)

Justyn otm

― Curt1s Stephens, Sunday, 25 February 2007 05:12 (eighteen years ago)

Babar the movie is the best movie.

― Abbott, Sunday, 25 February 2007 18:39 (eighteen years ago)

two months pass...

Ugh. Just watched it. González Iñárritu gets worse with every movie. This is contrived, aimless drivel. The photography is its only redeeming quality.

This is EXACTLY how i felt about the movie, otm.

the japanese girl story was the only part which had any watchable factor.

― Ste, Tuesday, 8 May 2007 15:52 (eighteen years ago)

just

― Ste, Tuesday, 8 May 2007 15:52 (eighteen years ago)

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