16.12.23
“Welcome to the asshole of Los Angeles…”
2023 belongs to Margot Robbie and Babylon is her fucking zenith. It’s a debauched 3-hour epic that throws a lot of blood, vomit, animal shite and snake venom on the screen. Not all of it sticks, but I had a blast watching it over two nights. It may be too sloppy and uncontrolled to be a truly great film, but I don’t know why I waited so long to check it out.
The first 25 minutes is archaic, jaw-dropping cinema. It’s one of the best opening scenes I’ve seen in years, and for better or worse, it reminded me of The Deer Hunter’s extended wedding opening scene, and more obviously Chazelle’s La La Land. The first hour introduces us to many likeable characters and maintains a brilliant pace and energy before things start to drag a bit from the hour mark up until the last 40 minutes. But it certainly captures the pounding enthusiasm of Chazelle’s other musical numbers on the screen and goes a step further in terms of ambition and scale. Due to Robbie’s vibrant performance, another easy comparison is Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, with the huge cast, golden age LA setting and the backdrop of aspiring to stardom. Margot Robbie’s role specifically echoes her Sharon Tate performance which is clearly intentional and just reminds the audience across both films what a huge, deserved talent she is. Chazelle shows keen insight into the era, using the cast’s free-flowing chemistry to comment on how the end of the silent film era often left talents stranded, which also allowed me to make the comparison to Hazanavicius’ The Artist.
The ending is a beautifully cerebral and emotive experience, almost feeling like a separate film in how Chazelle masterfully brings this ode to old Hollywood and Los Angeles together. It displays all his talents and hallmarks as a director while providing meaningful commentary on the costs of ambition. Babylon may be overlong, but it’s one wild ride with incredible highs that make it worth the slower points. The final sequence speaks to deeper societal shifts, showing that reaching one’s dreams while maintaining a moral compass can be as difficult as ascending to fame and the supposed glory that comes with it.