Review: Babel

Babel (2006)

Directed by: Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu

*ing: Brad Pitt
Cate Blanchett
Mohamed Akhzam
Said Tarchani
Boubker Ait El Caid
Adriana Barraza
Gael Garcia Bernal
Rinko Kikuchi and a million others.

Rating: ****1/2

Named after the “tower of Babel” mentioned in the holy Bible, Babel is a saga spanning across four continents.
Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu is back to what he does best. A handful of stories intertwined with a common, basic factor. In, Amores Perros (Life’s a Bitch, his first and best film to date) it was dogs and a car crash and in Babel, it’s a shot gun and everyday human tragedy.
Although Babel is not as spectacular as Amores perros, it is definitely a classic in its own right. After all, it would be stupid to keep chasing Amores perros for a successor.

The film commences in the rugged North Africa, Morocco to be precise. A local shepherd (Mohammed) purchases an old, smuggled shot gun to keep the wolves at bay. He hands the gun over to his sons Ahmed (Said Tarchani) and Yussef (Boubker Ait El Caid), drenched in authenticity with dirt, sweat and masturbation in the desert. They fool around idiotically trying to figure the better shooter; till Yussef lets one loose on a tourist bus he spots from the cliff. What happens here after in these villager’s lives is too shocking to reveal.

Boom! It’s Susan (Cate Blanchett) who is shot through the bus’ glass window. Her vacation to Morocco with her husband Richard (Brad Pitt) now seems jinxed. They had considered this as their “time away” from their monotonous lives to work out their dying marriage. It’s Susan who might die now. With nowhere to go and thousands of miles away from any sight of a developed structure, they’re compelled to take refuge in a local village doctor’s stuffy home. Does she survive the gruesome wound, the barren country and unforeseen circumstances?

Shift to the U.S.A., where Richard and Susan’s kids are being taken care of by their Mexican nanny Amelia (Adriana Barraza) who desperately wants to visit New Mexico for a family wedding. Denied by Richard, she indulges in foul play as she does visit New Mexico but also takes the kids along. It’s her nephew Santiago (Gael Garcia Barnel) who does the honours of driving them across the border. But it’s when they are returning back to the States when tragedy strikes. Nanny, Santiago and kids are considered illegal immigrants which lead to dangerous circumstances.

Fly to Tokya, where a deaf and mute school girl Chieko (Rinko Kikuchi) cannot connect with the rest of the world or her father. The deafening music in a discotheque, the giggling girls, the fast-speaking hunks, none of this makes any sense to her. She is like a dog on Pluto. What is so touching about her is her vulnerability in this sad-bad world. She’s also sex-starved and extremely desperate to loose her virginity. From flashing in public to arousing a cop at her apartment, she tries every possible measure to get laid. But there’s more than that meats the eye. There lies a buried secret, between her father and her. A secret about their lives, their tragedies and “the blessed gun”; which is unraveled at the very climax of the climax.

What works for Babel is its massive appeal and honest execution. Also, the way the director handles such a complex concept with delicate finesse is highly commendable.

The camerawork and cinematography (Rodrigo Prieto) are world class. Taking effeicient advantage of the beautiful landscapes, flashing neon-lights, glittering deserts and rugged backdrops, the various locations offer.
The music by Gustavo Santaolalla is mesmerizing and vivid. Better than his rap, hip-hop score in Amores perros.

Of the almost infinite starcast:
Its Rinko Kikuchi who stands out instantly. She is meticulously detailed as the frustrated, deprived and tragedy-struck young girl. Amidst mammoth celebrities, she holds her own. Outstanding.

Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett are perfect. They play the typical American couple with ultra eas

Adriana Barraza as the lovely nanny is heart-melting and arouses sympathy with every tear shed. Gael Garcia Barnel as the care-free Santiago is effective even in a pea-sized role. These two Mexican stalwarts portray complex characters with amazing depth.

As the first timers, the Moroccon actors - Mohamed Akhzam, Said Tarchani, Boubker Ait El Caid etc. are as real as the film itself.

Babel is as diverse a film as one can make in regard to genre, language, location, religion and characters. Just writing this review and fitting every aspect has exhausted me no end. Thus, one can imagine the hardships and trauma; the director must have faced in order to complete such a motion picture successfully.

Not only does he successfully complete it but does an enormously splendid job of it. He breaks all possible barriers and touches the dimension of our emotions, we never knew existed.
My money was on Babel for the Best Picture Oscar. I believe, the film was too good for the Oscar itself.

- Abbas Aziz Dalal.