Babylon

UK Release Date. 20 January 2023
Certification. 18
Running Time. 3 hours 9 mins
Director. Damien Chazelle
Cast. Jovan Adepo, Diego Calva, Li Jun Li, Tobey Maguire, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Jean Smart.
Rating. 71%

Review.

Damien Chazelle's Babylon is an audacious hedonistic epic. Described in press interviews as "a poison pen hate letter to Hollywood, and a love letter to cinema" Chazelle's film is set in the 1920s, in the early days of cinema, when talking pictures were a new phenomenon and Hollywood was still in its infancy. Chazelle's ambitions are huge and the director delivers a series of exhilarating set pieces full of richly developed characters.

The director wastes no time establishing the tone of the film, as he plunges into a 30 minute tour of an extravagant Hollywood party with every form of excess and debauchery imaginable on show (as well as one or two you probably wouldn't think of). The opening set-piece is a triumph with the flamboyant Nellie LaRoy (Margot Robbie) the glue that holds it all together. Endlessly spiralling, with wild hair and an attention-grabbing red dress made of strategically placed bands of fabric, Robbie dominates proceedings. After 15 minutes of this loosely choreographed debauchery, I was beginning to wonder whether I'd be able to endure three hours of such hedonism. 

The film consists of interweaving storylines featuring five principal characters,

• Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt), a dashing, charming screen idol with a pencil moustache. Pitt captures the depths and nuances of the character perfectly - frustrated at being trapped in costume dramas, Conrad struggles to make the transition from silent movies.
• Manuel Torres (Diego Calva), a young, Mexican immigrant, who adores cinema. Taken under the wing of Jack Conrad, Torres becomes swept up in Hollywood's expansion. Calva brings a charming naivety to a role that predominantly serves as the eyes of the audience.
• Nellie LaRoy (Margot Robbie), an aspiring actress, who is already a star. "Honey, you don't become a star. You either are one or you ain't," she tells Manny. "I am one." Whilst Robbie delivers a charismatic performance, her range is set firmly in the context of Harley Quinn in 1920s Hollywood - volatile, maniacal and exuberant. As such, Nellie's more emotionally demanding moments are somewhat lacking.
• Trumpet player, Sydney Palmer (Joven Adepo), a talented session musician who seizes the opportunity of sound to become an overnight sensation in the film industry. The character is apparently based on the jazz bandleader Curtis Mosby.
• Finally, Lady Fay Zhu (Li Jun Li), a risqué Chinese-American performer inspired by the first Chinese-American actor to star in films, Anna May Wong. Li Jun Li produces a captivating performance.

With these final characters, Chazelle makes a valiant attempt to honour the gay actors and writers, along with the black musicians, who contributed so much to the output of studios like MGM and Paramount. The problem is that Sidney Palmer and Lady Fay Zhu are not afforded enough screen time, so they are overshadowed by the film's desire to show the cinema industry as all-powerful. These underdeveloped characters inevitably end up as a token gesture.

Babylon is not without its flaws. The film is sprawling and messy. Clumsy and hugely judgemental. But I struggle to see the vitriol that many have levelled at the film. Every bit as repulsive as it is romantic. Babylon reveals the film industry's self-destructive, narcissistic tendencies. Chazelle's ambition is undeniable. Yet even with all its flair, what the film is trying to say about the early days of cinema gets lost in the noise.