Story and tone

“Babylon” is the fifth full-length film by one of the most talented directors of our time – Damien Chazelle. After launching his career with the acclaimed musical drama “Obsession”, Damien Chazelle gained worldwide recognition, and studios eagerly offered him funding for his next hit. It’s hard to name another director who is young enough and, more importantly, talented enough that every film is a true work of art.

Whether it’s the musical “La La Land” or the biographical drama “Man on the Moon”. Not least of all the credit goes to the fact that Chazelle studied filmmaking at Harvard University. It’s thanks to his major education that his films look so flawless, measured and effortless.

“Babylon” definitely stands next to the director’s previous works. You can see that Damien has absorbed all the directorial and screenwriting experience, revealing his next, stunning picture to the audience.

The film describes the 20’s of the movie industry in Hollywood, the moment when the sound cinema replaces the silent. Manny (Diego Calva) and Nelly (Margot Robbie), the main characters, dream of working in the film industry. The only, quick way to get such a job is through the big and crazy parties of famous producers. At one of them, Nellie gets an invitation to the shooting and Manny gets a job as an assistant to silent film star Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt). Who is just dreaming of perfection and change in the film industry. However, these same changes in the form of the advent of sound cinema and the changing conditions of its production, put the main characters in very difficult, and in some ways desperate, situations.

Visual imagination

More than once films have shown what the actor’s job is really like (“Birdman,” “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”), but nobody touched on the history of the ’20s. So this, first look at the filmmaking process of silent movies looks very entertaining and, surprisingly, crazy.

When crews shoot seven or eight films at once in a deserted field, they stage epic medieval battles with hundreds of actors side by side. The film vividly portrays the filmmaking process when plans fall apart actors miss calls, cameras fail, weather turns bad, and hidden industry struggles surface.

Themes

The very title of the film, Babylon, is naturally a biblical reference. Babylon in the Bible is the city that God used to judge people, and in general Babylon became the embodiment of the power that opposes God. Like a god bringing justice, changing people’s fates, the inevitable changes in the movie ruin the lives of the main characters. Manny and Nellie, who have just got their chance to touch the coveted profession, inevitably face insurmountable difficulties in the form of transformation of silent movies into sound. 

Pros

• A bold and passionate vision from Damien Chazelle.
• A fascinating portrayal of Hollywood during the transition from silent to sound cinema.
• Strong performances from the main cast.
• Impressive scale and attention to historical detail.
• A sincere love letter to cinema and its creators.

Cons

• The film may feel excessive and overwhelming to some viewers.
• Its ambition and runtime can be exhausting.
• Not all characters’ arcs may resonate equally.

Final verdict

“Babylon” by Damien Chazelle is a statement about the love of cinema, made with great love both for the details of the 1920s and the history of cinema in general. And the main characters are shown to be true film fanatics, just like Damien Chazelle himself. The only thing they want is to be involved in this meaningful and in some ways magical art. We are all united by a love of film. Everyone has their own favorite genre, their own movie, but cinema as a whole is the one thing that unites, and will always unite, all people around the world.