Its nearing Oscar time again and with that comes a hearty helping of film buzz. This year's nominees for Best Picture are an eclectic group which includes Babel, Letters From Iwo Jima, Little Miss Sunshine, The Departed and The Queen. This week I had the opportunity to see Babel and I took it.
I went in knowing nothing about the film. I had heard some of the buzz, but nothing particular and, in fact, I don't believe I had even seen the trailer. All I knew was that Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett had star billing. So in I went with a blank slate, something that I am rarely afforded these days, but it was a welcome and refreshing change.
Without giving too much away, Babel is a film that takes a single event and then shows how completely different worlds apart become entangled in the interconnectedness of our increasingly smaller world. It was somewhat similar to last years Best Picture winner Crash in that regard, although, beyond that these films share little in common. For starters, I enjoyed Babel infinitely more than Crash. I'll just leave it at that.
Credit director Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu (21 Grams) with presenting some very interesting stories. However, the manner is which they are woven together is a stretch, and unfortunately didn't work well together for me at all. The stories were worthwhile but the conflict of their relationship causes trouble for the film. The individual parts are interesting, but the whole is jumbled. I see how the characters and plots are connected, but that device pales in comparison to the compelling nature of each story resulting in an ultimately aimless film.
First, we are introduced to an American couple vacationing in Morocco who are suffering marital strife, a small Moroccan family living in the heart of North African wilderness, a nanny who is caring for the aforementioned couple's children back home in San Diego and finally a deaf-mute Japanese girl and her father who also have a strained relationship. A tragedy in Morocco ends up affecting all these characters.
As I've said, the individual stories were interesting, especially the Japanese story which seemed a completely different film all its own. The Japanese storyline followed the day in the life of a deaf-mute high school girl who is struggling with her place in the world, namely that people don't see her as anything other than "monster" to use her words. We watch her struggle in the common social situations and especially in the arena of boys and dating where her disability seems to her to be an impenetrable barrier. It seems that only her friends (who are also deaf) are the only ones who treat her with any amount of dignity. In response, she takes on behavior that screams for help in its recklessness and inappropriateness. Worse yet, her mother is dead and the relationship with her father is rocky. The question is how she will cope or will she even cope? Presentation of this plot was exceptionally well done and I was drawn in from the beginning.
The plots of American couple and the Moroccan family are directly connected when a shooting accident critically wounds one of the Americans leading to an international incident and the struggle to survive in heart of a foreign land. A couple already in the midst of strife seemingly have only each other as they face an uncertain future. Meanwhile, the Moroccan family is torn apart when the authorities come looking for the shooter putting them in their own struggle to survive.
Finally, the nanny taking care of the kids is called away from San Diego with no one to look after the kids while she is gone forcing her to take them with her in what turns out to be an illegal action. For me, this story, while a socially relevant and passionate commentary, was the weakest link.
I see this film as being almost too ambitious. Does it have a message? Yes, although I find it a bit difficult to clearly discern. Is Innaritu's aim more to make a statement on the interconnectedness of life or is it more his aim to make a point about the need for better interpersonal communication as the title would suggest? Its very hard to tell, and while I like the parts, the sum just doesn't seem to add up. Then again, I shouldn't be surprised that this film is a Best Film nominee. Films that are more artsy and philosophical tend to do well in this arena, and yet I would be surprised if Babel actually wins. Then again, I was shocked that Crash won! It certainly didn't deserve to, but it may be the same emotional mindset that votes for Babel this year.
In the end I really appreciated aspects of this film, but I don't consider it a great or powerful film. It required more cohesion and frankly the individual plots worked more to serve their own ends rather than to effectively pull together the big picture. Perhaps it was a shortcoming of the director or perhaps it just was too diverse in its focus or lack thereof. See it if you have a genuine interest, but if you aren't chomping at the bit, wait for DVD. 6/10
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