Babel

Babel, 2006

Babel

I don’t know what movie I thought I was going to be watching, but I didn’t expect the movie to turn out to be what it was. I thought it was going to be some great movie that dove more into communication throughout the world. I didn’t really expect it to be such a heavy movie and for that matter never expected to have to watch the movie for sixty minutes before I felt like something had finally happened.

Babel is almost one of those movies that you feel like you have to like because of peer pressure, but I didn’t like the movie when I watched it. I kind of rolled my eyes a little after watching the younger of the two sons, who were responsible for the shooting of an American Woman, started to masterbate while hanging out on the side of a mountain watching after goats. Not to mention the Japanese deaf mute who tried to throw herself at anyone man with a heart beat. Both which happen within the first thirty minutes of the movie, and if that doesn’t scream, “Please nominate this film for every available award.” I don’t know what does.

I have to admit though, that I liked the general idea the story took. I was just lost somewhere in the translation of the story to film. And maybe I’m the only one, but I felt like the entire timeline in the movie was off. It felt like the same day that the Moroccan man and his sons were shot happened the same day Cate Blanchet was shot. Even though the Japanese news reported that the ordeal had lasted for five days. Which really put a kink in things, because I thought the Japanese deaf-mute girl’s story line had occurred within one whole day. Which doesn’t even really go on to explain the same time line and how these stories were intertwined with one another, or the story line with Brad Pitt and Cate Blanhett’s children and their trip to Mexico either. But honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever be happy with the timeline of the movie.

The biggest problem of all that I had with the movies was that it progressed so slowly, not only the story line but do we really need to watch Cate Blanchet gaze out the window so long? No. Shave a couple of seconds here and there and the entire running time is cut down maybe fifteen minutes without sacrificing any major story lines; making inpatient audience members like me happier.

Final thoughts: As rough as it sounds, I just didn't like this movie. I think it screams for attention and is overrated. Basically, it's not something I'm going to watch again in the future.

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