It is amazing how we differ in our tastes -- after watching the film, I came here to comment and read what others had to say, expecting possibly some in-depth positive reviews and was so surprised when reading reviews contrary to what I had expected. As many of you have, I grew up watching Brad Pitt at a peer age level (he's a few days short of a year older than I am), and have always appreciated what he has consistently put into the roles he has played, giving substance and depth to so many of the characters he has portrayed; however, his portrayal in this film brought more realism to his character than I have observed before IMO (I know this whole review is "in my opinion," though I still felt it was necessary to make that clear).
My first thought after the conclusion of the film was to wonder if Babylon was pure fiction or based on actual people and events (especially after recognizing Paramount Studios there in Culver City just blocks from where I worked some time ago), and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was 'loosely' based on real people and events rumored to have occurred during the circa in which this story was set. It was near the end of the movie when I noticed that I had enjoyed the film far more than I had expected, which was only apparent to me after reading a review below which mentioned that the movie was over three hours long -- that surprised the hell out of me, so much so that I had to confirm to satisfy my curiosity not feeling that I just watched a movie that was more than three hours in length.
Going back to Brad -- [spoiler] It was when Jack (Brad) was confessing to Lady Fay Zhu (Li Jun Li) that he was just tired, reflecting back on earlier times when it was fun, and that after so many projects that it was a good run (and getting his agent to admit that the movie was a piece of $hit and that Jack was bailing him out of his situation while agreeing to do the part). It was at that time that I could see what was going to follow, saying to myself out loud, "Oh no, he's going to eat a bullet." I could just see it in his eyes, hear it in voice, and read between the lines of the words he was saying (the words were that of the writer, of course, but the other couple of signs were made clear through Brad's portrayal -- his expressions, eyes, and mannerisms, which again IMO painted that picture so clear to me because of what he put into the role -- the quality of his acting). Even the poor acting of his character was clear to me because of the great acting Brad showed.[/spoilokiouI'm a pretty easy, enjoying many crappy movies thought knowing the difference -- I may enjoy some of the bad films out there, but I will never call them good, showing only that the bad movies entertain me, while good films and good actors will always get my respect and praise to the efforts put into the roles and stories which set them apart from being just entertaining, expressing my opinion as I've done here. I've seen so many movies that I know when a film is over two hours and almost always over three or four but I fell way short of feeling the three until it was expressed in a review here,
I hope this review helps people by giving a contrasting analysis and opinions based on the results. If you have a short attention-span, three hours may be difficult to sit through though - and don't do it alone!
Review by HoundCatBlockedParent2023-03-11T16:02:01Z
It is amazing how we differ in our tastes -- after watching the film, I came here to comment and read what others had to say, expecting possibly some in-depth positive reviews and was so surprised when reading reviews contrary to what I had expected. As many of you have, I grew up watching Brad Pitt at a peer age level (he's a few days short of a year older than I am), and have always appreciated what he has consistently put into the roles he has played, giving substance and depth to so many of the characters he has portrayed; however, his portrayal in this film brought more realism to his character than I have observed before IMO (I know this whole review is "in my opinion," though I still felt it was necessary to make that clear).
My first thought after the conclusion of the film was to wonder if Babylon was pure fiction or based on actual people and events (especially after recognizing Paramount Studios there in Culver City just blocks from where I worked some time ago), and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was 'loosely' based on real people and events rumored to have occurred during the circa in which this story was set. It was near the end of the movie when I noticed that I had enjoyed the film far more than I had expected, which was only apparent to me after reading a review below which mentioned that the movie was over three hours long -- that surprised the hell out of me, so much so that I had to confirm to satisfy my curiosity not feeling that I just watched a movie that was more than three hours in length.
Going back to Brad -- [spoiler] It was when Jack (Brad) was confessing to Lady Fay Zhu (Li Jun Li) that he was just tired, reflecting back on earlier times when it was fun, and that after so many projects that it was a good run (and getting his agent to admit that the movie was a piece of $hit and that Jack was bailing him out of his situation while agreeing to do the part). It was at that time that I could see what was going to follow, saying to myself out loud, "Oh no, he's going to eat a bullet." I could just see it in his eyes, hear it in voice, and read between the lines of the words he was saying (the words were that of the writer, of course, but the other couple of signs were made clear through Brad's portrayal -- his expressions, eyes, and mannerisms, which again IMO painted that picture so clear to me because of what he put into the role -- the quality of his acting). Even the poor acting of his character was clear to me because of the great acting Brad showed.[/spoilokiouI'm a pretty easy, enjoying many crappy movies thought knowing the difference -- I may enjoy some of the bad films out there, but I will never call them good, showing only that the bad movies entertain me, while good films and good actors will always get my respect and praise to the efforts put into the roles and stories which set them apart from being just entertaining, expressing my opinion as I've done here. I've seen so many movies that I know when a film is over two hours and almost always over three or four but I fell way short of feeling the three until it was expressed in a review here,
I hope this review helps people by giving a contrasting analysis and opinions based on the results. If you have a short attention-span, three hours may be difficult to sit through though - and don't do it alone!