Babylon (2022)

[Eric the Fall Guy]

Discuss

[Webslinger]

Babylon marks yet another big swing for writer-director Damien Chazelle – his biggest yet – and like his past work, it connects in exhilarating fashion. If Chazelle’s 2016 musical La La Land was a tribute to the optimism and allure of movies, Babylon is a no-holds-barred glimpse into the darkness and cynicism that undergird the very same industry. Taking an approach reminiscent of Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights, Chazelle charts the meteoric highs and abysmal lows of several industry players against the backdrop of the emergence of sound. The film pulsates with energy from one dizzying scene to another, and Chazelle’s instincts for spectacle and pitch-dark humor resonate all the way through. Much will be made of the film’s opening sequence – essentially a horny, drug-fueled rager that introduces us to all the major players – but the sequences depicting film production in both the silent era and the burgeoning talkie era are also mightily impressive – and that’s to say nothing of later sequences that explore the true depths of the hypocrisy and depravity at the core of the film’s universe. And of course, in characteristic Chazelle fashion, the finale is a dazzling sequence that left me breathless at the final cut to black. In front of the screen, the cast is truly huge (to the point where staying for the first part of the credits is practically a requirement to see who you caught and who you missed), and the performances match the go-for-broke ambition of their director. Margot Robbie swings big in her work as rising star Nellie LaRoy and does impressively energetic and committed work, even if it does seem – as in this year’s Amsterdam – like she is sometimes playing Emma Stone playing this character. (The fact that Chazelle frames and lights her similarly to Stone in La La Land adds to this weird phenomenon, for sure.) Fresh face Diego Calva works well as the straight man and audience surrogate, though he feels just a bit underdeveloped amid so many other moving pieces. Brad Pitt is clearly having a grand time as a silent film legend, though he’s also effective in imbuing his character with a haunted edge. There are also some killer scenes from Jean Smart (who gets a searing monologue that underlines many of the film’s themes brilliantly) and Tobey Maguire (who is at his most unhinged and creatively inspired in many years). Though I suppose that the film is vulgar, cynical, and long-winded enough to turn potential viewers off (as evidenced in a wildly polarized reception that I must confess I’m a little confused by having now seen the film), it’s such a spectacle that must be seen to be believed. 

 

A-

[filmlover]

I found this to be wildly uneven but in the end I think it worked for the most part? Damien Chazelle is certainly swinging for the fences here, and he delivers plenty of terrific moments (loved the entire sequence of the film shoot getting interrupted by an endless series of setbacks and the crazy stuff with Tobey Maguire's deranged mobster), none more exhilarating than the 30 minute introductory sequence. That said, it doesn't always use its way too long 188 minute runtime well, as the characters end up feeling underdeveloped and some sections of the movie drag on for too long. But Chazelle clearly knows how to keep things visually interesting (incredible costumes and production design and cinematography) and he once again fills his cast with quality actors. This might be one of my favorite performances from Margot Robbie yet: Nellie's a complicated character, but she pulls off everything the role asks of her. Hollywood newcomer Diego Calva is also pretty good, but Brad Pitt is the MVP for me as perhaps the most developed character in the entire movie. Overall, it's energetic and worth seeing on the big screen, even if it falls well short of becoming the epic movie industry classic it aspires to be.

 

I'm gonna have to go with "no" on that montage at the end though. So cheesy. Tron! Terminator! Jurassic Park! The Matrix! Avatar even on the movie screens it's not playing on this holiday season! Ruined what could've been a perfectly good conclusion with Calva in the movie theater.

 

B-