Why You Probably Shouldn’t Watch Babylon A.D.

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Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Science Fiction, Thrillers, New Releases

If you’re still trying to decide whether Babylon A.D. is worth spending your money on this week, there are two things you should probably note:

1. The bored look on Vin Diesel’s face. (See above.)
2. These words from the film’s director: “It’s pure violence and stupidity.”

And while there are times when that last sentence might be considered a compliment, Mathieu Kassovitz wasn’t trying to be funny.

Read More | AMC

Why would a director say such an awful thing about his own film? Well, because the finished product didn’t come out the way he had intended to.

“I’m very unhappy with the film. I never had a chance to do one scene the way it was written or the way I wanted it to be. The script wasn’t respected. Bad producers, bad partners, it was a terrible experience.”

Keep in mind, this adaptation was something the French filmmaker had been wanting to create for 5 years. (The movie is based on a French novel titled Babylon Babies by Maurice Georges Dantec.) Unfortunately, budgetary problems, weather setbacks and interfering studio took his vision in an entirely different direction. (Which is probably why I can’t recall ever seeing a commercial for the barely promoted project.)

In the end, Kassovitz’s story about a mercenary who helps transport a woman from Eastern Europe to New York in 2019 was whittled down by the studio to a reportedly confusing 93 minutes.

“I should have chosen a studio that has guts. Fox was just trying to get a PG-13 movie. I’m ready to go to war against them, but I can’t because they don’t give a s—t.”

Uhh, thanks for the warning.