Babel DVD Review

A shot is fired in the Moroccan desert that resonates across the world. Goat farmers’ sons Yussef (Ait El Caid) and Ahmed (Tarchani) are given their first rifle to protect the herd against jackals but arguments ensue as to which of them is the best shot. As Richard (Pitt) struggles to find any kind of medical assistant for the victim of the bullet, his wife Susan (Blanchett), the media reacts to news of her shooting. Back in the US, Richard and Susan’s housekeeper Amelia (Barraza) takes their children across the boarder into Mexico with her nephew Santiago (Bernal) to her son’s wedding. In Japan, Chieko (Kikuchi) is struggling to cope with the suicide of her mother and trying be noticed by boys who won’t ignore her because she is deaf. The sound of the shot echoes in every one of these families lives but how will they cope with its circumstances.

When Alejandro González Iñárritu makes a movie, the cinematic community takes notice and ‘Babel’ is a film that has great potential but can it live up to it?

After bringing us the critically acclaimed ‘Amores Perros’ and ’21 Grams’, Alejandro González Iñárritu has gained a reputation as filmmaker that has the ability to get the most out of his actors in stories that have a lot to say. ‘Babel’ is his most ambitious project yet. Telling four stories that take place on three different continents, they are all connected by one thing, a gun.

As a shot rings out in the Moroccan desert, the repercussions of that shot are felt around the world. Because the bullet hits an American tourist, terrorism is instantly blamed but the realisation that the people responsible are actually two Moroccan children, brings home the consequences of firing a gun in modern world. Across the world in the US, the children of the victims of the gunshot are taken to Mexico by their housekeeper for her son’s wedding. When they try and get back into the US however, everything goes wrong. Finally in Japan, a deaf Tokyo teenager is having trouble getting boys to like her because of her disability. These stories play out concurrently but they are all connected by the shot.

Where the film succeeds is in the performances and the realisation of the characters. Alejandro González Iñárritu has a real gift for getting stunning and emotionally charged performances from well-known actors and those who have even being in front of a camera before. ‘Babel’ keeps up this tradition with some truly stunning performances from the entire ensemble. Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Gael García Bernal are the big name stars of the piece and they give outstanding performances but they are not the main focus of the movie. Pitt and Blanchett are the victims of the gunshot and their story is simply a struggle for survival. Bernal’s character is the nephew of housekeeper Amelia and the one that gets her into trouble when he tries to get back into the US. The real stars of the film are the unknown actors however. Adriana Barraza’s Amelia, the housekeeper and nanny to Pitts and Blanchett’s children, is simply a stunning performance from Mexican actress. After working with Iñárritu before in ‘Amores Perros’, the director really knows how to get the most out of her. Rinko Kikuchi is astonishing as deaf Japanese teenager Chieko, who is struggling to cope with the death of her mother and her rejection in Tokyo society. Finally you have the emotionally charged performances of Boubker Ait El Caid and Said Tarchani as Moroccan goat farmer’s sons Yussef and Ahmed. These are the boys that fire the shot that starts the cavalcade of events and they have to deal with the repercussions like everyone else.

‘Babel’ is a fascinating collection of stories all linked by a lone gunshot. While is definitely an ambitious project that gives more time to certain stories than others, the quality of the performances and the power of the messages it is trying to tell means ‘Babel’ is a movie that will cause debate and conversation about the world we live in today.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good.

BONUS FEATURES (2-disc Edition)

Common Ground: Under Construction Notes (1hr 27.31mins) Director Alejandro González Iñárritu, director of photography Rodrigo Prieto, producers Jon Kilik, Ann Ruark and Steve Golin, composer Gustavo Santaolalla and stars Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael García Bernal, Boubker Ait El Caid, Said Tarchani, Mohamed Akhzam, Yuko Murata and Rinko Kikuchi take you behind the scenes of ‘Babel’. Filming in Mexico, Morocco and Japan, the documentaries reveals the international feel of the film and highlights the fact that most of the actors were either little known performers or have no experience at all. From the problems in filming in Japan, to the Tijuana wedding, this excellent documentary covers the filmmakers and the extras stories on making this powerful movie.

Theatrical Trailer Watch the preview of the movie that promoted it in cinemas and on the Internet.

Trailers A preview of ‘An Inconvenient Truth’

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for ‘Babel’ consists just of the documentary, but when it is as good as this, fans of the movie should have absolutely no complaints. It covers every aspect of the making of the film, giving an honest and personal account of the processes and stresses that came with making such an ambitious project. This is how making of documentaries should be made.