Review of Babel (2008) by Suvo P — 12 Mar 2012

Sometimes, through the eyes and great direction of some directors, a movie no longer appears to be just a movie. It becomes a piece of life. Babel is exactly a movie of that sort. The way the movie portrayed the different cultures of different countries is excellent. But the thing which deserves more plaudits is how Alejandro Gonzalaz Inarritu showed life thriving in different environment.

The movie is, one can say, based or set upon one single event. A misfired (though it was a hit) shot from a winchester rifle in the deserts of Morocco changed the lives of 4 families. Spanned over 4 countries, the way, Inarritu showed the aftermath of that incident, is exceptional. The greatness about the story-telling is that it tells four or five different stories and everyone of which one can relate with, surpassing the cultural barriers. Just like the movie's poster, it's a collage of moments, moments which everyone faces once in their lives even though they don't want to face that.

The cinematography; be it deserts of Morocco or Mexico or the Suburbs of Japan, the cinematography played its part and boy! Did it play well. It is one of the ingredients which makes this movie an art. It's like poetry in motion.

If Cinematography is one of the constituents, then another has to be the performances. The stars, Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett were brilliant. Blanchett didn't get much to show her prowess though; but Pitt was excellent. Rinko Kikuchi and Adriana Barazza's Oscar nomination is very well deserved and justified. Personally, Kikuchi's performance appeared very heart-wrenching and thus phenomenal to me. Not to forget the performances of those two Islamic Moroccan kids.

Finally, it is one of those rare movies which can put one into a trance or a reverie, even after the credit gets rolled. One of the reasons for that is the soundtrack 'Endless Flight'. It's a privilege watching this sort of movies.