What Went Wrong: Babylon A.D.
By Shalimar Sahota
December 13, 2012
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Based on the novel Babylon Babies by Maurice G. Dantec, the book takes place during a fractured future, touching on geopolitics, war and religious ideas. The film seems to be but a fraction of the book. Set in the future (we don’t know what year exactly) Toorop (Vin Diesel), a mercenary living in New Serbia, is hired to escort a mysterious young woman, Aurora (Mélanie Thierry) to New York. Accompanying her is Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh). During their journey they are chased by various groups that also want Aurora… but who knows why.
Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, he also co-adapted the screenplay and produced the film. He had been involved with bringing the novel to the screen since 2002. Financing came through from Studio Canal and 20th Century Fox in 2005, with the film budgeted at $60 million. Shooting took place from December 2006 to May 2007; however, things did not go according to plan… assuming there was one to begin with.
In April 2007 it was reported that there were supposedly clashes between Diesel and Kassovitz, with Diesel sometimes turning up late to the set while Kassovitz would have a breakdown. These reports were denied by producer Alain Goldman, though he did mention Kassovitz’s temper on set, which was largely due to the film’s “tough schedule.” A report by the New York Post revealed that they were spending way too much time shooting on a soundstage in Prague and eventually had to be moved out by Disney, who needed it for their Chronicles of Narnia sequel, Prince Caspian. Goldman tried to keep things positive, saying that the film “is going to mark a new departure in action films.”
Babylon A.D. ended up falling behind schedule and going over budget, partly due to the inclusion of new scenes being inserted and also due to weather complications, such as a lack of snow for a chase sequence. Because of this, the film had to be bailed out by insurance company Film Finances Inc. Kassovitz would argue that one of the reasons why this happened was because the producers took over and wanted the film to have more action scenes. Notably, the inclusion of a car chase at the end of the film was apparently a decision by Fox to beef up the action (it’s also not present in the European version of the film).
A year later in April 2008 came the news that the film was being edited by Fox for the US. Originally expected to be released with an R rating, it appeared that Fox was cutting the film in order to obtain a PG-13, which they got. It also turned out that Europe was to receive a different version of the film - a slightly longer version.
Just days before its release, Kassovitz opened up about his experience working on Babylon A.D. in an interview with AMCTV, blasting the movie. “I’m very unhappy with the film,” he said. “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.” Blaming bad producers and partners, he described his time on the film as “terrible.” Placing the blame with Fox as to why the film ended up the way it did, he said, “They made everything difficult from A to Z...I should have chosen a studio that has guts.” He called Babylon A.D., “pure violence and stupidity,” which is the kind of quote you’d expect to see on the cover of the DVD. He also revealed how originally the action scenes had a goal. “They were supposed to be driven by either a metaphysical point of view or experience for the characters... instead parts of the movie are like a bad episode of 24.”
Kassovitz’s rant must have put a full stop to most of the film’s potential audience thinking about viewing the film. If Babylon A.D.’s own director is announcing that the film is no good, then the only reason anyone is turning up is to see just how bad it actually is. Anyone else that brought a ticket probably just didn’t get the news.
Because it went over budget, Babylon A.D. ended up costing $70 million. The film was released unceremoniously (it was not screened for critics) on August 29, 2008 over the Labor Day weekend. Out at a fairly wide 3,390 venues, the film took $9.4 million on its opening weekend to reach #2. It was reported that there was very little advertising for the film up until the week it was released. It was also no surprise that it did not fare well with the critics who were brave enough to go view it. The following week it was down to #6 with just $4.1 million. It ended its run in the US with a domestic take of just $22.5 million. Overseas grosses amounted to $49.5 million (with $8 million coming from France). Babylon A.D. had earned a total worldwide gross of $72 million.
While the film opens with a somewhat interesting monologue, it seems that any philosophical and religious message that Kassovitz was trying to put across was suddenly lost during Fox’s decision to increase the action (possibly done because Fox feared a backlash). For example, the opening monologue is reduced in the US version, with dialogue where Toorop denounces God removed entirely, yet it is retained in the European version. Given Fox’s editing of the film, if you take out the end credits, the version released in the US is really only around 80 minutes long. There was an extended cut released on DVD, this being the version released theatrically across Europe, which runs around ten minutes longer and has alternate dialogue.
Even with the technical expertise (the special effects look reasonably good) and fine actors involved (including Charlotte Rampling and Gerard Depardieu in supporting roles), the story is lackluster. There doesn’t seem to be any real importance placed upon Toorop’s mission. Despite the inclusion of Michelle Yeoh, there is also nothing whatsoever unique about the action here. The film has the most insanely ridiculous ending, with Diesel holding hands with two young children making their way home. One has to wonder if Diesel’s star power was starting to wane at this point in his career. It’s possible that he might have damaged his credibility as an action star, having maybe lost fans due to previously starring in the comedy The Pacifier.
The documentary Fucking Kassovitz (yes, that is what it’s actually called) appeared online in 2011, detailing some of the problems that occurred during the making of the film. A good chunk of it generally has Kassovitz getting annoyed with how things are not going the way he wants. It actually opens with him apologizing to his cast and crew for “the mess” that the movie is in. At one point he’s noticeably upset that there isn’t enough of a budget to make the film look like it’s set in the future. In fact, one of the weirdest futuristic advancements seen in the film is a TV you can’t turn off.
When a director goes out of his way to announce that the film he’s just made is stupid, then it’s pretty much dead on arrival. Given Kassovitz’s outburst, that the film made any money at all is quite surprising. Having Babylon A.D. re-released in the future with a director’s commentary would make for fantastic viewing, but it also seems highly unlikely. As it stands, it’s unclear as to just how much of the film is close to Kassovitz’s vision and how much was butchered by Fox, who was either concerned with how the story might be perceived, or they just lacked faith in the director. Maybe it was both.