Babylon A.D. (2008)

Director:

Mathieu Kassovitz

Writers:

Maurice G. Dantec (novel)
Mathieu Kassovitz (scenario and dialogue) ...

Release Date:

29 August 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

Veteran-turned-mercenary Toorop takes the high-risk job of escorting a woman from Russia to America. 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. |

Plot Keywords:

Host | Organism | Cult | Harvest | Russia

Cast

Vin Diesel	...	Toorop
Michelle Yeoh	...	Sister Rebeka
Mélanie Thierry	...	Aurora
Gérard Depardieu	...	Gorsky
Charlotte Rampling	...	High Priestess
Mark Strong	...	Finn
Lambert Wilson	...	Darquandier
Jérôme Le Banner	...	Killa
Joel Kirby	...	Dr. Newton
Souleymane Dicko	...	Jamal
David Belle	...	Kid with Tattoos
Radek Bruna	...	Karl
Jan Unger	...	Fight Promoter
Abraham Belaga	...	Assistant to High Priestess
Gary Cowan	...	Neolite Executive

Also Known As:

Babylon Babies (USA) (working title)
Misión Babilonia (Argentina) (Peru) (Venezuela) [es]
Вавилон н.э. (Russia) [ru]
Babil M.S. (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Babylon A.D. (Japan: English title) [en]
Babylon A.D. (Greece) [el]
Babylone A.D. (Canada: French title) [fr]

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

90 min | 101 min (extended version)

Country:

USA | France | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #44122) | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-13 | South Korea:12 | Malaysia:U | Netherlands:12 | Portugal:M/12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Sweden:15 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Peru:14 | Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16 (extended version) | Mexico:B | Brazil:14

Filming Locations:

Barrandov Studios, Krizeneckeho namesti, Prague, Czech Republic

Company:

Canal+

Trivia:

The film had to be bailed out by the studio's insurance company, after running over-budget and falling significantly behind schedule.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: The Noelite Convent appears for the first time with the location 41°10'N and 74°46'E, identified as Mongolia. According to Google Earth, that location is a mountain in Kyrgyzstan, more than 1000 km from the Mongolian border.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Toorop: Save the Planet.

Movie Connections:

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Soundtrack:

Dueuces

Sadly average

I should say first that I don't know the book this movie is adapted from, so I just mean to give an opinion on the movie itself and the way it's handled.

Director Mathieu Kassovitz has been in the business for a while now and is a well complete actor as well and still something about this project went wrong. The story itself seems solid - and somewhat I can imagine the book being just great - but the movie looks rushed with only the most important and visual parts shown.

Actually, it's a kind of annoying experience as you can see how really good it could have been if they only did a better job on the background and the storytelling instead of mixing everything from the book in an action packed movie. Now being totally honest, the action isn't great at all thanks to the shaky hand cam effect (The Bourne Legacy I guess ...) and uninspired choreography. Same goes for the acting : Depardieu and Wilson are easily the worst : they would have read the script for the first time it wouldn't have surprise me.

Considering all the good material it certainly feels like a misproduction, someone said the director and actor Vin Diesel were having different opinions and I do hope the latter won because if Kassovitz did it the way he wanted I'd be really disappointed.

We've been awarded with such great movies around the same kind of subject (Children of Men to name one) that this one seems pale compared to those.