So after being a delinquent not only in my blogging but in my movie-going, I finally came to my senses last night and went and saw the been-out-in-the-theatres-so-long-its-growing-mold Babel. I feel as though I am about to commit movie-going sacrilege by saying this but so be it: I didn't like this film.
Well, "like" is probably not the best term to use as isn't meant to be a film you "like" as much as it is meant to provoke thought and discussion and emotion. And yes, it does all that - the story of lives across the globe seemingly unrelated but intrinsically intertwined... the impact of a globalized world, and how the actions of one impacts many in this kind of culture...how violence is at its root meaningless...how quick we all are, as nations and individuals, to jump to conclusions, to not look beyond the surface, how we don't SEE each other anymore...
Look - all great, discussion-provoking topics and ideas, absolutely. But BABEL was more of a tedious ride down a less-steep-than-you-want-it-to-be roller coaster that it was the gut-wrenching cross-cultural drama it was played out to be. The pace of the film was painfully slow and while well acted and clearly holding the best of intentions, this film bored me more than moved me. You knew where the film was going - that was OK in fact - but the film to forever to get THERE, and in the meantime I began to care less about what happened to the characters.
I blame myself for having waiting so long to see it, but honestly I was really disappointed by Babel - with such potential, I was hoping for much more than it delivered.
