Hollywood, excesses, orgies, debauchery and chaos are some of the best words to describe the new film by Damien Chazellethe director who in recent years has conquered movie lovers with titles such as Whiplash, La La Land Y The first man on the moon.
For his new staging, the 38-year-old director set out to write a love letter to the cinema where he did not skimp on spices and went for everything within his reach. Along the way he included some of the biggest names in the industry: margot robbie, Brad Pitt, Toby Maguire Y Jean Smartamong others.
Listed as one of the most anticipated films of the year, Babylon it failed to win over critics and audiences in the way many expected, culminating in one of the biggest box office flops of 2022. While it’s clear the film won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, here are a few reasons why you should give Babylon a try.
4 reasons why you should see Babylon:
A love letter to the cinema
Movies about movies are nothing new. There are lots of them and in recent decades we have witnessed a large number of productions. just mention The invention of Hugo Cabret by Martin Scorsese, Hail, Caesar! of the Coen brothers once upon a time in hollywood by Quentin Tarantino, La La Land of Chazelle and, more recently, The Fabelmans by Steven Spielberg.
Chazelle He set out to return to one of his great loves and tell a story about the magic of cinema and its impressive transformative power. For this, she went back to the 20s, a troubled time for the world and especially for hollywood, which had to face an unprecedented revolution: the talkies. This technological change brought about a revolution that brought opportunities for many, but it also meant the end of an era, which left a large number of stars aside, giving rise to many others.
This is precisely where it begins Babylon, in the transition from silent to talkies and what it meant for all those who were part of the industry, both behind the cameras and in front of them. Here we meet the three characters who will carry the film forward: Nellie LaRoy, Jack Conrad and Manuel Torres.
Nellie (margot robbie) is a young woman from humble origins who dreams of being a star and without having acted in a single movie, she already believes she is one. One night she goes to a huge party at the house of a famous film producer where she meets Many (diego bald), one of the employees who also dreams of breaking through in the world of dreams. There we also meet Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt), one of the leading men of silent cinema who has the industry at its feet with his great box office successes, his appearance and the women in his life.
masterful performances
One of the highlights of the film are its performances. The three main characters in charge of margot robbie, Brad Pitt Y diego baldstand out with their great moments on screen.
Robby gives one of the best performances of her career in the role of Nellie LaRoy. Every time the Australian actress bursts onto the scene, it’s practically impossible to take your eyes off her. The subtle nuances in her performance and her physical presence transform the energy of each take. There is a scene in particular in which her character is on her first day of filming and the director gives her a series of instructions that lead her to outline a series of subtle variations in her performance, transforming the sequence completely.
Brad Pitt He also stands out with his acting. The actor will give life to Jack Conrad, a gallant who is at the top of the industry, with problems of addiction to drink and his taste for women. However, the interpreter shines much more when his character begins to realize that his career is coming to an end and his days as a movie star are over.
Another of the sweeping presences of Babylon is diego bald. Manny’s character is the one who carries the weight of history on his shoulders and is the common thread for much of the film. Through his character we see how what he idealized so much ends up ruining his life in ways he did not imagine. Hence, Manny ends up being a waterfall of emotions, very interpreted by the Mexican actor, especially among so many renowned artists around him.
Other names in the cast that also deserve mention include Jovan Adepo as Sydney Palmer, a black trumpeter who also makes his film debut and despite having had his moment to shine, soon sees the lights go out for his kind. Another one that shines is Li Jun Li as Lady Fay Zhu, a woman who inspired with her beauty and her ability to put words to the dialogue pieces in silent films and that soon fell into disuse due to the arrival of talkies. .
Babylon also features some very well done cameos from Olivia Wilde, as Jack Conrad’s weary wife; or director Spike Jonze, who plays a deranged silent film director.
A scathing critique of Hollywood and the fragility of stardom
From the first minute to the end, Babylon it is a succession of events without limits and at times even meaningless. Orgies, parties, chaos and an energy rarely seen in a movie that leaves you wanting more. Although at times it makes us doubt its historical accuracy, in the end it is clear that everything ends up making sense.
However, within its excessive script, Chazelle take the opportunity to bring out that movie magic can also be destructive. The film focuses on the sweeping force of an industry that had to adapt to stay relevant, no matter the cost. In Babylon, the transition from silent to sound films not only brought about a technical change, but also removed a large number of stars from the scene who were forgotten overnight. Something that continues to happen today.
However, Chazelle manages to get a hopeful message out of that dark side of Hollywood. Although the stars go out as he passes through the screen, he will remain forever immortalized on celluloid. The magic of cinema and the weight of the legacy that they leave behind becomes resistant to any fashion, trend or technological change that comes their way. The latter is evident with a brilliant montage at the end of the film that summarizes in a few seconds the history of cinema, the changes of era and the power that each of these images brings with it, that of being eternal.
A staging of epic proportions
As we are accustomed to in each of his films, Chazelle he achieves another film where the technical aspect is overwhelming but in a good sense of the word. The film’s photography is a genius that comes from cinematographer Linus Sandgren, who previously collaborated with the filmmaker on La La Land and in The first man on the moon.
The same can be said of Justin Hurtwitz and his masterful soundtrack, which brings a unique rhythm to this fast-paced tale. With some hidden chords that remind us of the two films mentioned above, Hurtwitz achieves unique melodies that will remain etched in our minds.
Although it may feel excessive, messy and long in its more than 3 hours of duration, it is worth giving a chance to Damien Chazelle already his Babylon, which with all the good and all the bad, makes it clear that throughout its history, cinema has been a medium that has allowed us to experience and explore all kinds of emotions, even when they are anger and rejection. The truth is that cinema always manages to comfort us and makes us feel less alone in our daily chaos, something that should last forever.
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Babylon: why you should see the new movie with Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt
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