Reviewed by Cassam Looch
Stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Mélanie Thierry, Gérard Depardieu, Charlotte Rampling,
Mark Strong, Lambert Wilson, Joel Kirby, Jérôme Le Banner | Written by Eric Besnard
UK certification 12A | UK RRP £19.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 90 minutes | Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
A by the numbers futuristic sci-fi movie, Babylon AD is worth noting if only to see that Vin Diesel is actually still alive and well. The film itself obviously suffers from comparisons to other giants in this genre, most notably the granddaddy Bladerunner, and although having very little originality to rely on, Babylon AD does have just about enough to haul it out of one-star hell.
A mercenary living in Russia is hired to escort a woman to a highly-fortified America. The mysterious girl (Thierry) is accompanied by her guardian (Yeoh) who will not leave her side and joins the dangerous mission. As they journey across various wastelands the girl begins to show special abilities that both protect and endanger those around her. When the trio finally arrive in America they realise the full implications of what they are doing…
One of the mock trailers in the outstanding Tropic Thunder has Ben Stiller’s character starring in pretentious-looking futuristic blockbuster called Scorcher 2. I mention this because that was all I could think about as I was watching this. The heavy-handed message is delivered constantly to the viewer and the silent, brooding hero is so unremarkable that you could easily swap Stiller’s Scorcher for Diesel’s Toorop. Babylon AD treads a fine line between sci-fi and sentimentality, and fails to elevate its source material to the levels of the outstanding (and similarly-themed trio on the run movie) Children of Men. Some neat touches remind us of the potential here but never amount to anything substantive. The chemistry between the leads is uneven and relationships end up going nowhere fast. We learn nothing about the backgrounds of the leads and even the dramatic flashback opening is undone later in the film.
There is a good film hiding in this mess but fussy editing, reshoots and rewrites appear to have ruined the director’s original vision. As for Diesel, I suspect he will be hoping the next Fast and Furious (third sequel in the cops and cars franchise) will mark his comeback. Good luck with that.
EXTRAS *** At the moment there’s just a single-disc DVD available for Babylon AD. However, director Kassovitz – having distanced himself from the re-cut-by-the-studios cinema version – has indicated he prefers a longer cut, with an additional 15 minutes of footage. Bonus material on this disc includes short ‘making of…’ features that focus on action set pieces and include interviews with stunt directors. There’s also an interview with author Maurice Dantec, who wrote the novel Babylon Babies on which the movie is based, as well as a graphic-novel-styled animation that serves as a sort of movie prequel. No sign whatsoever of director or star input. — Robert Hull