Babylon A.D.

[Bourne101]

http://l.yimg.com/img.movies.yahoo.com/ymv/us/img/hv/photo/movie_pix/twentieth_century_fox/babylon_a_d_/babylonad_galleryteaser.jpg

Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz

Written by Eric Besnard, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Joseph Simas

Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Mélanie Thierry, Gérard Depardieu

Genre: Action/Adventure

Veteran-turned-mercenary Thoorop takes the high-risk job of escorting a woman from Russia to China. Little does he know that she is host to an organism that a cult wants to harvest in order to produce a genetically modified Messiah.

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality.

Runtime: 90 minutes

I don't know about this one. The runtime has been slashed by Fox, the trailer was merely OK, and it's being dumped at the end of August. I will probably see it, but my expectations are extremely low.

[xseanymacx]

I'm going to wait for some Schmoes reviews before this one...

[daddiefatsacks]

the plot sounds like 'children of men'

[ilovemovies]

The whole messiah thing just sounds really wierd.

Looks like a solidly entertaining action movie though. Vin Diesel is always fun to watch.

[FireCaptain4]

I guess I'm the only one that thought the trailer kicked major ass? Sure, it didn't look great, but I love these kinda genre films (I'm a major sci-fi and action fan, especially when those two are brought together). I really dig Diesel in roles like this (Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick). I'm interested, but I'll wait for reviews as well.

[Jig Saw 123]

When I first saw the trailer I thought it was a Blade Runner remake, than when I saw Vin I was like, won't be seeing this. Than the plot thickens when he has to help a "unique" girl survive aka Children of Men.

[FireCaptain4]

When I first saw the trailer I thought it was a Blade Runner remake, than when I saw Vin I was like, won't be seeing this. Than the plot thickens when he has to help a "unique" girl survive aka Children of Men.
I see your point, many have also mentioned this and I agree. However, there are countless films that have taken many elements (mainly it's look and fell) from Blade Runner. "Babylon A.D." will just be another of the many. Also, it's based on this book: http://www.amazon.com/Babylon-Babies-Maurice-G-Dantec/dp/0345505972/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219546430&sr=8-1

So, maybe the story similarities are the writers' fault?

[Jig Saw 123]

I see your point, many have also mentioned this and I agree. However, there are countless films that have taken many elements (mainly it's look and fell) from Blade Runner. "Babylon A.D." will just be another of the many. Also, it's based on this book: http://www.amazon.com/Babylon-Babies-Maurice-G-Dantec/dp/0345505972/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219546430&sr=8-1

So, maybe the story similarities are the writers' fault?

But the look and fell is a clear rip-off even more than other past films such as The Matrix. This film would seem more interesting if it was taking a more serious approach, instead of having high flying action (guy doing back flips on snowmobile). And I wish they would have cast someone else, Vin Diesel's acting was even bad in the trailer. "Are you a killer Mr. Toorop?", "Yes, now please get into the car"

[starcat]

I would like to check this movie out... I think Vin Diesel is wicked awesome. Pitch Black is one of my all time favorites, and I dug The Chronicles of Riddick was alot as well. The trailer looked pretty good, but not enough for me to figure out exactly whats going on in the flick. I wish it wasn't rated PG13, cause now i'm too afraid it will be too much like XXX, cause as much as I am a Vin Diesel fan that movie was pretty bad. I just wish they would hurry up and make another Riddick movie already!!! Atleast we are getting another Fast and Furious with Vin!!!!

[AndrewDB]

I'll probably check it out.

[Morzongo]

I've seen it in a recent press screening and it wasn't very good. It's like a mixture between Children of Men, XXX and The Fifth Element. Vin Diesel has a good presentation but then the movie goes down with a lot of action secuences, some of theme really absurd with the yamakasi people jumping around again (thank's Luc Besson for introducing thant kind of action scenes in every action movie you produce). There are characters interpreted by Charlote Rampling and Gerard Depardieu which are really poor.

It's entertaing, but not too much.

5/10

[Robot]

I have no desire to see this. Vin Diesel doesn't do much for me as an actor.

[MidnightAngel]

http://l.yimg.com/img.movies.yahoo.com/ymv/us/img/hv/photo/movie_pix/twentieth_century_fox/babylon_a_d_/babylonad_galleryteaser.jpg

Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz

Written by Eric Besnard, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Joseph Simas

Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Mélanie Thierry, Gérard Depardieu

Genre: Action/Adventure

Veteran-turned-mercenary Thoorop takes the high-risk job of escorting a woman from Russia to China. Little does he know that she is host to an organism that a cult wants to harvest in order to produce a genetically modified Messiah.

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality.

Runtime: 90 minutes

I don't know about this one. The runtime has been slashed by Fox, the trailer was merely OK, and it's being dumped at the end of August. I will probably see it, but my expectations are extremely low.

I'd rather wait for the unrated extended version on dvd.

[Moviefan1234]

This doesn't look very good, I won't be seeing it in theatres.

[Danger^Cart]

I'll probably end up seeing this, for lack of a better option.

I'm a Vin fan, though, so it won't exactly be torture.

[unspoken]

The trailer for this looked atrocious. So much so that I would rather see College if I didn't already have concert tickets Friday night. It'll be one that I maybe catch when it's on the movie channels.

[xseanymacx]

I will say one thing, that poster is awesome. The coloring is phenomenal.

[PR0J3KT M]

pretty stoked for this movie..i just like vin diesel in any action film..loved triple x, the fast and the furious, a man apart..haha..i just enjoy seeing him on screen.

[Shockwave]

9o minutes sounds like a hack-job got handed down to this.

Ill wait for an extended cut IF one ever comes out to watch this.

[Strider]

I'm not sure about this one. The fact that Fox cut down the running length worries me, and the story sounds like Children of Men and the film looks way too much like Blade Runner. I like Vin Diesel myself, but Babylon A.D. screams "studio dump." I might wait for the DVD.

Strider

[FireCaptain4]

The trailer for this looked atrocious. So much so that I would rather see College if I didn't already have concert tickets Friday night. It'll be one that I maybe catch when it's on the movie channels.

Oh, c'mon! It wasn't that bad...

[Cosimo]

i'd watch this. could be a guilty pleasure

[MidnightAngel]

http://www.joblo.com/kassovitz-on-babylon

This is gonna be bad.

[FireCaptain4]

http://www.joblo.com/kassovitz-on-babylon

This is gonna be bad.

I'll be waiting for DVD then. This is very simular to what FOX pulled on David Fincher with Alien 3, only they didn't let him make a film (maybe that came off a little strong, I do like the Assembly Cut in my Alien Quadrilogy set).

I usually don't hate things, but I do hate FOX as a movie studio.

[anakinsrise]

Vins character looks like a mix of XXX and Riddick

[Shale]

I have no desire to see this. Vin Diesel doesn't do much for me as an actor.

He's and actor? I didn't know that. :eek:

I love to watch him kick ass on screen tho. :rolleyes:

[Rukas]

^^^ Not really fair. He did a great job in Strays, Bioler Room and Find Me Guilty. And to a lesser extent in the first Fast and Furious.

He is actually a pretty capable actor.

[ilovemovies]

What a disappointment! For the for first two thirds this movie comes off a second rate, silly, dumbed down version of Children of Men. Then things get confusing and wierd and awfully silly during the third act and then the movie ends in the most oddest, unsatisfying and anticlimatic way. Unfortunately, the action in the movie isn't that great either. Most of the time they are bogged down by too many quickcuts/fast edits. The action, save for a couple of cool scenes early in the movie, fail to generate anything resembling tension or excitement. The movie does look good (the cinematography and production design are at times breathtakingly good) and there is a seed of some potentially intriguing ideas. But they are at best half baked and never expanded. The thing is, I understand that FOX cut some of the movie but the director said only about 15 minutes of the movie were cut and quite frankly I'm not sure 15 minutes would have been enough. Something tells me, even his original vision, while maybe would have been a little better, still would not have been a great movie. Besides, it wouldn't have fixed the action scenes. Actingwise, nobody really stands out except for maybe Michelle Yeoh and the actress who plays Aurora. Both are quite good. Vin Diesel is okay, but this is definitely not his best work. Overall, this is not a terrible movie. It is occasionally diverting. But it could have been so much is ultimately a massive letdown. It's a stepup from the director's last movie, the awful Gothika. But that's not saying much.

5/10

[Danger^Cart]

4/10

Man I hate Michelle Yeoh.

[FireCaptain4]

Man, do I feel like a traitor and a sellout. Despite telling myself I wouldn't go see it, I did.

I have a feeling that the messy execution of "Babylon A.D." was the fault of the studio (FOX has been doing this kind of thing a lot recently) and not the director. The fact that Kassovitz has turned his back on FOX and claimed this cut of the film isn't his says a lot about the production of the film. I'm interested to see his director's cut because, despite it's many flaws and storyline that runs rampant and directionless, "Babylon A.D." had its moments. I would recommend all parties that are interested to skip out on this one and wait for a Director's Cut when it hits DVD. While the action is here, we've already seen plenty of movies this past summer that executed special effects ad action a much smarter fashion ("Iron Man", "The Incredible Hulk", "The Dark Knight", "Hellboy II: The Golden Army"...). This is by far one of the most disappointing movie experiences of the year for me, thus far. The only thing this film managed to instill in me is a longing for another Riddick film from Vin Diesel. All-in-all, "Babylon A.D." is very much a dumped film in a dumped week at the ass end of summer 2008.

4/10

[Shale]

Babylon A.D.
Review by Shale
August 30, 2008

Despite the hot, moist, gusty tropical weather here in Miami Beach today, (We are between two hurricanes at the moment) I did bike over to the cineplex because I am always up for a sci-fi action flick with Vin Diesel in the lead. Besides, the trailers looked interesting.

This movie wasn't screened in advance for critics, usually a sign that they didn't want their movie trashed until after it opens. Well, it was roundly trashed by the reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes. Here is a sampling of the 95% of reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes who gave it a splat!

Undeniably awful....Fairly terrible techno-punk action flick...Babylon AD and its own destiny appear lurching toward Babylon DVD, prophetically much sooner than later...Brawny but brainless techno-twaddle...Like a futuristic remake of "XXX" no one ever asked for, this atrociously lame and redundant sci-fi flick may be the dullest action movie of the year...A huge mess of a film that has many ideas behind it, but finds only poor ways to execute them.

Even the two good reviews posted had this to say:

James Christopher of The Times-UK "It’s utter codswallop, yet enjoyable if you unplug your brain."
Xan Brooks of The Guardian "You don't need to have a grudging affection for Vin Diesel to appreciate this dunderheaded comic-book adventure - although, obviously, it helps."

OK, I can unplug my brain to watch one of these teen action flicks and I do have an affection for Vin Diesel, so I won't exactly trash this movie, but the detractors had valid points.
(Just watched xXx this week and Vin has a whole new set of tats from that movie)

Vin Diesel's new movie tats
http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1192008/photo_04_hires.jpg

The story as seen in the trailers has hard-nosed smuggler, Toorop (Vin Diesel) living in hard-scrabble "New Serbia" after some apocalyptic near-future. He is grabbed by warlord Gorsky (Gérard Depardieu) and given a job to smuggle a woman to New York. Lots of sci-fi technology stuff that is probably being invented right now (love the road map), but there is a lot of good old guns and fist action in the movie as well.

He is dropped off at a monastery in Mongolia where he picks up the cargo, Aurora (Mélanie Thierry) and her guardian, Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh). They then go thru all the bleak places such as a refugee center in Vladivostok and a trip across the Bering Strait, eventually making it to their destination New York, where more intrigues unfold with the monastery's High Priestess (Charlotte Rampling) who heads the crooked religious order.

Sister Rebeka, Aurora and Toorop On The Run
http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/gallery/1192008/photo_07_hires.jpg

More sci-fi tech stuff thrown in here with the High Priestess and her scientist cohort, who know the secret of the smuggled woman. There - a quick rundown of the story and I think I've avoided spoiling anything. Of course you know from the first look at Charlotte Rampling that she is a villain, just as you knew that the reserved nun played by Michelle Yeoh would do some kickass martial arts scenes.

This movie was nothing but a way to escape momentarily and for a summer matinee wasn't that bad. But it wasn't good and I particularly did not like the ending, which was ambiguous and appeared they ran out of film or something and yelled "cut" before the story was finished. Coulda been a setup for a sequel, but I doubt anyone will go see it after this movie, which should be on DVD shortly.

BTW, after the movie I went to the video store and bought a cheap used Pitch Black and The Chonicles of Riddick. (OK, so I am in love with Vin Diesel) Just watched Pitch Black so now I can say I saw a good Vin Diesel movie today.

[veddhead83]

You can tell Fox or someone fucked with this movie. The last 30 mins is a trainwreck. The ending was laughable.
Minus the ending and snowmoblies, and this could have been a decent film. I am interested in seeing some sort of Director's Cut - if Fox allows him to have one.....
I think studios receive more hate if they tinker with a movie, rather than just releasing the directors final product. More often than not, there is an audiences for almost anything. Just let the directors direct and the studios release. Quit fucking with movies!!!!!

[Max Cady]

The first 75% of the movie was awesome IMO. Seemed like it was going places and the whole story with the girl was getting interesting. The whole concept of him smuggling through these war torn countries was awesome.

Spoilers

when they got to NY, the movie just fell off hard. great flick until the NY stuff, the girl being a genetically made person seemed like a total cop-out, what a waste.

Had the potential to be on the level of the Riddick series but, fell off towards the end.

7/10 IMO

Pick up Chronicles of Riddick and Pitch Black, Riddick is probably the best Sci-Fi movie made in the last decade.

[Badbird]

I thought it was great. Choppy as hell, yes, but still very enjoyable. I loved all the visual touches and the technology of the future (even if they're still driving modern cars in the future, but then again, futuristic cars almost always end up looking stupid).

I doubt we'll see a true Director's Cut. Remember Fox did the same thing last year to Hitman (cut out about 20+ minutes), and we never saw that version on DVD.

9/10

[Cosimo]

GUILTY PLEASURE!!

since the days of arnie i have been waiting for something like this to come along

i will start by saying it's 5 star rating on imdb is unjustified especially when compared to other overly praised films i have seen this year

babylon ad maybe at times slightly over the shop but it's definitely vin diesels best central starring film outside pitch black. c'mon xxx, riddick and fast and the furious are just terrible! in babylon ad diesel is well cast, looks the part and puts in a solid performance

kassovitz may have lost control in the edit but his shots, the tech on display and his vision of the future is intact and quite compelling but a better version of the film is out there no doubt

to sum up it's no children of men but it's still a ride worth taking. the man did direct la haine afterall!

and the girl melanie thierry was kinda smoking! she got nice lips she as

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