Babylon A.D. (film)
Encyclopedia
Babylon A.D. is a 2008 science fiction
action film
based on the novel Babylon Babies
by Maurice Georges Dantec
. The film was directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
and stars Vin Diesel
, Mélanie Thierry
, Michelle Yeoh
and Lambert Wilson
. It was released on August 29, 2008 in the United States.
named Toorop (Vin Diesel
) is living in New Serbia
, Eastern Europe. Branded as a terrorist, he is forbidden from returning to the United States
. One day, he is offered a courier contract by a Russian mobster, Gorsky (Gerard Depardieu
). Toorop accepts in return for a chance to return to the United States, as he will be given an unfakeable U.N.
passport that must be injected subdermally
and half a million dollars. Gorsky instructs him to bring a young woman, an orphan known only as Aurora (Mélanie Thierry
) to New York City. He is provided with weapons, maps, and money to secure passage.
Toorop travels by a reinforced car on an industrial lifting electromagnet
hoisted by an Mil Mi-24
gunship. The helicopter drops the car off near a thousand-year old convent in Kyrgyzstan
, now occupied by a Christian sect known as the Noelites. There he picks up a Noelite nun named Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh
) and her charge, Aurora. They travel by car to Troitsk
in the border between Russia
and Kazakhstan
.
In Troitsk, Toorop purchases tickets of a train to Vladivostok
. When trying to board the train, Aurora inexplicably starts to panic and flees from the crowd. Toorop and Rebeka try to bring her back despite her continued pleading not to. Seconds later, a bomb explodes in the crowd, sparing them as they had gone after Aurora. Shaken, they board the train and Toorop demands an explanation for Aurora's apparent clairvoyance. Rebeka shrugs it off as coincidence and explains that Aurora was probably just scared as it was her first time out of the convent. The train continues on to Vladivostok, passing a nuclear blast crater on the way.
They arrive in a refugee camp in Vladivostok. Toorop contacts a smuggler named Finn (Mark Strong
) in a nightclub and secures passage by submarine
through the Bering Strait
to Canada
. An unknown group suddenly intercepts them and tries to offer Toorop more money to relinquish Aurora to their custody. When this fails, they try to abduct her. After a fight the leader of the group tells Aurora that they knew her father. With this revelation, Aurora agrees to go with them but Toorop stops her.
In the morning they go with refugees across the frozen sea to board the submarine. However, to avoid satellite detection, the submarine can only surface for a limited amount of time, leaving some refugees behind and even resorting to shooting them. Aurora, infuriated by the loss of life, starts to operate the 30-year-old submarine, without having ever learned about it. She states that she can 'feel them dying' and threatens the submarine crew with a gun but is eventually subdued by Toorop and the submarine continues diving.
Rebeka and Toorop are both mystified by Aurora's outburst and her apparent knowledge of the submarine controls. Sister Rebeka explains to Toorop that Aurora could speak nineteen different languages by the age of two, and always seems to know things she has never learned. Three months before leaving with Toorop, she has begun acting in ways she never had before. This occurred after a visit by a Noelite doctor who had administered a pill to Aurora. The doctor tells her to go to New York City
and arranges for Toorop to take them. Finn tells Toorop that he suspects Aurora was carrying a viral bomb.
On landing in Canada, they cross the border to the United States with snowbikes. Along the way they are spotted and attacked by two aerial drones
, wounding Toorop. Aurora again displays extraordinary medical knowledge as she pulls out a piece of metal from Toorop's wounds. Finn attempts to kill Toorop and Rebeka and take the passport and Aurora, but Toorop shoots him first. They cross the border safely and leave for New York by plane.
In New York they learn from a news broadcast that the Noelite convent they were from had been hit by a missile the moment they crossed the Canadian border. This causes the group to realize that there is more going on than they know. The Noelites have become a major new salvationist religion, which vast numbers of people cling to as the world spirals out of control. However, in private meetings, it is seen that their High Priestess is really just after power, and tries to use various invented miracles to get more people to believe in the truth of her religion. Gorsky, working for the Noelites, had planted a tracking device in Toorop's passport, and then bombed the convent when he knew they were in the United States
. The doctor who earlier saw Aurora in the convent then appears to examine her again. When he leaves, Aurora reveals to both Rebeka and Toorop that she is pregnant with twins
, even though she is a virgin.
Looking outside, Toorop sees Gorsky's men as well as the Noelite group, heavily armed and waiting for them. The High Priestess then calls Toorop and asks him to bring Aurora outside. As they were letting Aurora into the limousine, Rebeka warns Toorop with a glance. One of the guards had a gun pointed at them, ready to kill them once Aurora was handed over. Toorop changes his mind and starts a firefight with the two groups with the ultimate goal of getting the two women to safety. However, because of the tracking devices, Gorsky's men can lock onto Toorop with tracking rockets. Rebeka is shot and killed defending Aurora, who in turn shoots Toorop saying the words, "I need you to live." By dying, the rocket goes off target and explodes near Aurora instead. Aurora survives the rocket explosion apparently with seemingly supernatural powers.
Toorop's body is revived by Dr. Arthur Darquandier (Lambert Wilson
), using advanced medical techniques, but Toorop's right arm and left leg are replaced with cybernetics
to undo the damage of being dead for over two hours. Darquandier explains that when Aurora was a fetus
, he enhanced her by using a supercomputer
to 'implant' intelligence into her brain. The Noelite group had him create Aurora to become pregnant at a certain time in order to use her as a vessel for twin babies with almost supernatural intelligence, designed to be the next step in human evolution. The apparent 'virgin birth
' and the powers of her children were supposed to provide a manufactured 'miracle' to boost membership of the Noelites.
After she was born, the Noelites hired Gorsky to kill Darquandier, but Darquandier survived. Darquandier remained 'dead' until he found his daughter in Russia with Toorop.
Doctor Darquandier uses a machine to go through Toorop's memory to find what Aurora said to him before Toorop 'died.' In Toorop's memory, Aurora tells Toorop to "go home." Toorop, as well as several of Darquandier's men, leave the facility. En route to Darquandier's lab, the High Priestess calls Gorsky, at which point he is killed by a nuclear missile sent to him by the High Priestess. Darquandier is later killed by the High Priestess, but it is too late, since Toorop has already escaped. Toorop goes to his old house in the forest and finds Aurora. Six months later Aurora gives birth to the children. Aurora was "designed to breed," not to live, so her death at childbirth was preprogrammed. Toorop is left to take care of the two children who are implied to eventually become the successors of the human race.
developed an English-language film adaptation of Maurice Georges Dantec
's French novel Babylon Babies
for five years; in June 2005, this project got financed from StudioCanal
and Twentieth Century Fox. The adapted screenplay was written by Kassovitz and screenwriter Éric Besnard. Production was initially slated to begin in February 2006 in Canada and Eastern Europe. French actor Vincent Cassel
was initially sought to be cast in the lead role. In February 2006, actor Vin Diesel
entered negotiations to star in the film, titled Babylon A.D., dropping out of the lead role of Hitman
in the process. Production of the futuristic thriller about genetic manipulation was slated to begin in June 2006. By February 2007, filming was slated to wrap in April to release Babylon A.D. in time for the coming Thanksgiving. In February, filming took place at Barrandov Studios
. In March 2007, the filming crew, having shot in the Czech Republic, took a two-week hiatus to deal with uncooperative weather, such as the lack of snow, and problems with set construction. Crew members scouted Iceland for locations with snow to shoot six to eight days of footage, which was supposed to be done in February. Filming was also done with the leads Diesel, Michelle Yeoh
, and Mélanie Thierry
in Ostrava
in March. The French visual effects company BUF Compagnie
was contracted to develop the film's effects under the supervision of Stephane Ceretti.
In April 2007, Babylon A.D. was reported to be over-budget and three weeks behind schedule. A lack of snow meant a skiing sequence to be shot in Eastern Europe had to be moved to Sweden. Later in the month, actor Lambert Wilson
was cast into the film. Filming was completed in May 2007.
American artist Khem Caigan designed the sigil
that appears as a tattoo on the right side of Toorop's neck - an emblem which originally appeared in the Schlangekraft Necronomicon in 1977.
Mathieu Kassovitz
said that 20th Century Fox
interfered throughout production, and he never had a chance to shoot a scene the way it was scripted, or the way he wanted it to be.
. The musical alliance Achozen
, represented by Shavo Odadjian
and RZA performed the score for the film. Music producer Hans Zimmer
described the intended style: "Musically, our objective was to merge the sounds and energies of hip hop with classical music, seamlessly melting them into an unusual soundscape."
on February 29, 2008, but its release was postponed to August 29, 2008. As of January 31, 2009, the film grossed $22,532,572 in the United States and $49,573,118 in foreign countries totaling a worldwide gross of $72,105,690 . The film was placed #2 behind Tropic Thunder
with $9,484,267 in 3,390 theaters with a $2,798 average. The film has the eighth-highest 4-day Labor Day gross since 1982. Despite its box office gross of over $71 million, the film is considered a very minor success considering its production budget of $70 million.
compiles a 26% rating based on 15 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes
gives the film a 7% approval rating based on 98 reviews (91 negative, 7 positive).
The unrated version differed greatly from the theatrical version. The ending was cut short and did not show the full-length ending that was in the theatrical version, followed by more expletives. Other short scenes were put in as well.
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
action film
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
based on the novel Babylon Babies
Babylon Babies
Babylon Babies is the third novel by French-born naturalized Canadian writer Maurice G. Dantec, published in 1999. It follows Sirène Rouge and Roots of Evil .-Edition:...
by Maurice Georges Dantec
Maurice Georges Dantec
Maurice Georges Dantec, or Maurice G. Dantec, is a French-born Canadian science fiction author and musician.- Biography :...
. The film was directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
Mathieu Kassovitz
Mathieu Kassovitz is a French director, screenwriter, producer and actor, best known for his Cannes-winning drama La Haine. Kassovitz is also the founder of MNP Entreprise, a film production company....
and stars Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He became known in the early 2000s, appearing in several successful Hollywood films, including The Fast and the Furious and xXx...
, Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry, is a French actress best known to international audiences for her role as Aurora in the 2008 film Babylon A.D.-Biography:...
, Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng is a Hong Kong-based Malaysian Chinese actress, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s....
and Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson is a French actor. He is internationally known for his portrayal of The Merovingian in The Matrix He was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of Georges Wilson, who was an actor, theatrical manager and director of the Theatre National de Paris.Wilson screen tested for The...
. It was released on August 29, 2008 in the United States.
Plot
In the year 2059, an American mercenaryMercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
named Toorop (Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He became known in the early 2000s, appearing in several successful Hollywood films, including The Fast and the Furious and xXx...
) is living in New Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Eastern Europe. Branded as a terrorist, he is forbidden from returning to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. One day, he is offered a courier contract by a Russian mobster, Gorsky (Gerard Depardieu
Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
). Toorop accepts in return for a chance to return to the United States, as he will be given an unfakeable U.N.
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
passport that must be injected subdermally
Subdermal implant
A subdermal implant refers to a kind of body jewelry that is placed underneath the skin, therefore allowing the body to heal over the implant and creating a raised design. These kinds of implants fall under the broad category of body modification. Many people who have these implants use them in...
and half a million dollars. Gorsky instructs him to bring a young woman, an orphan known only as Aurora (Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry, is a French actress best known to international audiences for her role as Aurora in the 2008 film Babylon A.D.-Biography:...
) to New York City. He is provided with weapons, maps, and money to secure passage.
Toorop travels by a reinforced car on an industrial lifting electromagnet
Electromagnet
An electromagnet is a type of magnet in which the magnetic field is produced by the flow of electric current. The magnetic field disappears when the current is turned off...
hoisted by an Mil Mi-24
Mil Mi-24
The Mil Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for 8 passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated since 1972 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and by over thirty other nations.In NATO circles the export...
gunship. The helicopter drops the car off near a thousand-year old convent in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
, now occupied by a Christian sect known as the Noelites. There he picks up a Noelite nun named Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng is a Hong Kong-based Malaysian Chinese actress, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s....
) and her charge, Aurora. They travel by car to Troitsk
Troitsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast
Troitsk is a town in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, located east of the southern Ural Mountains and approximately south of Chelyabinsk. It stands on the east-flowing Uy River, a branch of the Tobol River. Population: 83,862 ; -History:...
in the border between Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
.
In Troitsk, Toorop purchases tickets of a train to Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
. When trying to board the train, Aurora inexplicably starts to panic and flees from the crowd. Toorop and Rebeka try to bring her back despite her continued pleading not to. Seconds later, a bomb explodes in the crowd, sparing them as they had gone after Aurora. Shaken, they board the train and Toorop demands an explanation for Aurora's apparent clairvoyance. Rebeka shrugs it off as coincidence and explains that Aurora was probably just scared as it was her first time out of the convent. The train continues on to Vladivostok, passing a nuclear blast crater on the way.
They arrive in a refugee camp in Vladivostok. Toorop contacts a smuggler named Finn (Mark Strong
Mark Strong
Mark Strong is an English actor, with a body of work in both films and television. He has performed in films as varied as Body of Lies, Syriana, The Young Victoria, Sherlock Holmes, RocknRolla, Stardust, and Kick-Ass...
) in a nightclub and secures passage by submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
through the Bering Strait
Bering Strait
The Bering Strait , known to natives as Imakpik, is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, USA, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65°40'N,...
to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. An unknown group suddenly intercepts them and tries to offer Toorop more money to relinquish Aurora to their custody. When this fails, they try to abduct her. After a fight the leader of the group tells Aurora that they knew her father. With this revelation, Aurora agrees to go with them but Toorop stops her.
In the morning they go with refugees across the frozen sea to board the submarine. However, to avoid satellite detection, the submarine can only surface for a limited amount of time, leaving some refugees behind and even resorting to shooting them. Aurora, infuriated by the loss of life, starts to operate the 30-year-old submarine, without having ever learned about it. She states that she can 'feel them dying' and threatens the submarine crew with a gun but is eventually subdued by Toorop and the submarine continues diving.
Rebeka and Toorop are both mystified by Aurora's outburst and her apparent knowledge of the submarine controls. Sister Rebeka explains to Toorop that Aurora could speak nineteen different languages by the age of two, and always seems to know things she has never learned. Three months before leaving with Toorop, she has begun acting in ways she never had before. This occurred after a visit by a Noelite doctor who had administered a pill to Aurora. The doctor tells her to go to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and arranges for Toorop to take them. Finn tells Toorop that he suspects Aurora was carrying a viral bomb.
On landing in Canada, they cross the border to the United States with snowbikes. Along the way they are spotted and attacked by two aerial drones
Unmanned aerial vehicle
An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity...
, wounding Toorop. Aurora again displays extraordinary medical knowledge as she pulls out a piece of metal from Toorop's wounds. Finn attempts to kill Toorop and Rebeka and take the passport and Aurora, but Toorop shoots him first. They cross the border safely and leave for New York by plane.
In New York they learn from a news broadcast that the Noelite convent they were from had been hit by a missile the moment they crossed the Canadian border. This causes the group to realize that there is more going on than they know. The Noelites have become a major new salvationist religion, which vast numbers of people cling to as the world spirals out of control. However, in private meetings, it is seen that their High Priestess is really just after power, and tries to use various invented miracles to get more people to believe in the truth of her religion. Gorsky, working for the Noelites, had planted a tracking device in Toorop's passport, and then bombed the convent when he knew they were in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The doctor who earlier saw Aurora in the convent then appears to examine her again. When he leaves, Aurora reveals to both Rebeka and Toorop that she is pregnant with twins
TWINS
Two Wide-Angle Imaging Neutral-Atom Spectrometers are a pair of NASA instruments aboard two United States National Reconnaissance Office satellites in Molniya orbits. TWINS was designed to provide stereo images of the Earth's ring current. The first instrument, TWINS-1, was launched aboard USA-184...
, even though she is a virgin.
Looking outside, Toorop sees Gorsky's men as well as the Noelite group, heavily armed and waiting for them. The High Priestess then calls Toorop and asks him to bring Aurora outside. As they were letting Aurora into the limousine, Rebeka warns Toorop with a glance. One of the guards had a gun pointed at them, ready to kill them once Aurora was handed over. Toorop changes his mind and starts a firefight with the two groups with the ultimate goal of getting the two women to safety. However, because of the tracking devices, Gorsky's men can lock onto Toorop with tracking rockets. Rebeka is shot and killed defending Aurora, who in turn shoots Toorop saying the words, "I need you to live." By dying, the rocket goes off target and explodes near Aurora instead. Aurora survives the rocket explosion apparently with seemingly supernatural powers.
Toorop's body is revived by Dr. Arthur Darquandier (Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson is a French actor. He is internationally known for his portrayal of The Merovingian in The Matrix He was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of Georges Wilson, who was an actor, theatrical manager and director of the Theatre National de Paris.Wilson screen tested for The...
), using advanced medical techniques, but Toorop's right arm and left leg are replaced with cybernetics
Cybernetics
Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the structure of regulatory systems. Cybernetics is closely related to information theory, control theory and systems theory, at least in its first-order form...
to undo the damage of being dead for over two hours. Darquandier explains that when Aurora was a fetus
Fetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
, he enhanced her by using a supercomputer
Supercomputer
A supercomputer is a computer at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation.Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems including quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, molecular modeling A supercomputer is a...
to 'implant' intelligence into her brain. The Noelite group had him create Aurora to become pregnant at a certain time in order to use her as a vessel for twin babies with almost supernatural intelligence, designed to be the next step in human evolution. The apparent 'virgin birth
Miraculous births
Miraculous births are a common motif in historical literature and religious texts. Stories of miracle births often include miraculous conceptions and features such as intervention by a deity, supernatural elements, astronomical signs, hardship or in the case of some mythologies complex plots...
' and the powers of her children were supposed to provide a manufactured 'miracle' to boost membership of the Noelites.
After she was born, the Noelites hired Gorsky to kill Darquandier, but Darquandier survived. Darquandier remained 'dead' until he found his daughter in Russia with Toorop.
Doctor Darquandier uses a machine to go through Toorop's memory to find what Aurora said to him before Toorop 'died.' In Toorop's memory, Aurora tells Toorop to "go home." Toorop, as well as several of Darquandier's men, leave the facility. En route to Darquandier's lab, the High Priestess calls Gorsky, at which point he is killed by a nuclear missile sent to him by the High Priestess. Darquandier is later killed by the High Priestess, but it is too late, since Toorop has already escaped. Toorop goes to his old house in the forest and finds Aurora. Six months later Aurora gives birth to the children. Aurora was "designed to breed," not to live, so her death at childbirth was preprogrammed. Toorop is left to take care of the two children who are implied to eventually become the successors of the human race.
Cast
- Vin DieselVin DieselVin Diesel is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He became known in the early 2000s, appearing in several successful Hollywood films, including The Fast and the Furious and xXx...
as Toorop, a mercenaryMercenaryA mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
(full name is "Hugo Cornelius Toorop" in Babylon BabiesBabylon BabiesBabylon Babies is the third novel by French-born naturalized Canadian writer Maurice G. Dantec, published in 1999. It follows Sirène Rouge and Roots of Evil .-Edition:...
novel) - Mélanie ThierryMélanie ThierryMélanie Thierry, is a French actress best known to international audiences for her role as Aurora in the 2008 film Babylon A.D.-Biography:...
as Aurora, a young woman who has been genetically engineered - Michelle YeohMichelle YeohMichelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng is a Hong Kong-based Malaysian Chinese actress, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s....
as Sister Rebeka, a Mongolian Noelite nun and refugee - Lambert WilsonLambert WilsonLambert Wilson is a French actor. He is internationally known for his portrayal of The Merovingian in The Matrix He was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of Georges Wilson, who was an actor, theatrical manager and director of the Theatre National de Paris.Wilson screen tested for The...
as Dr. Arthur Darquandier, Aurora's father thought to be dead - Mark StrongMark StrongMark Strong is an English actor, with a body of work in both films and television. He has performed in films as varied as Body of Lies, Syriana, The Young Victoria, Sherlock Holmes, RocknRolla, Stardust, and Kick-Ass...
as Finn - Gerard DepardieuGérard DepardieuGérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
as Gorsky, a wealthy Russian mobster who hired Toorop to transport Aurora - Charlotte RamplingCharlotte RamplingCharlotte Rampling, OBE is an English actress. Her career spans four decades in English-language as well as French and Italian cinema.- Early life :...
as the Noelite High Priestess and CEO of the Noelite church who does not care or believe in religion, only power, fame, and fortune. She pays scientists to produce fake miracles in order to make hers the dominant religion, one of these miracles was for Aurora to be created as a female for a virgin birth and the focus of the Noelite's 'miracle day'. - David GasmanDavid GasmanDavid Gasman is an actor, director and translator who also directs dubbing of films, cartoons, video games and documentaries. He has appeared in many popular cartoons and video games, such as Rayman and Code Lyoko...
as Noelite Researcher - David BelleDavid BelleDavid Belle is well known as the founder of Parkour. Belle founded Parkour based on his training and the teachings from his father Raymond Belle. The discipline has since spread around the world and now has adherents in virtually every country...
as Kid with tattoos.
Production
Mathieu KassovitzMathieu Kassovitz
Mathieu Kassovitz is a French director, screenwriter, producer and actor, best known for his Cannes-winning drama La Haine. Kassovitz is also the founder of MNP Entreprise, a film production company....
developed an English-language film adaptation of Maurice Georges Dantec
Maurice Georges Dantec
Maurice Georges Dantec, or Maurice G. Dantec, is a French-born Canadian science fiction author and musician.- Biography :...
's French novel Babylon Babies
Babylon Babies
Babylon Babies is the third novel by French-born naturalized Canadian writer Maurice G. Dantec, published in 1999. It follows Sirène Rouge and Roots of Evil .-Edition:...
for five years; in June 2005, this project got financed from StudioCanal
StudioCanal
StudioCanal is a French-based production and distribution company that owns the third-largest film library in the world...
and Twentieth Century Fox. The adapted screenplay was written by Kassovitz and screenwriter Éric Besnard. Production was initially slated to begin in February 2006 in Canada and Eastern Europe. French actor Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel
Vincent Cassel is a Cesar award winning French actor probably best known to English-speaking audiences through his performances in the Ocean's Trilogy of films and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.-Personal life:...
was initially sought to be cast in the lead role. In February 2006, actor Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel
Vin Diesel is an American actor, writer, director and producer. He became known in the early 2000s, appearing in several successful Hollywood films, including The Fast and the Furious and xXx...
entered negotiations to star in the film, titled Babylon A.D., dropping out of the lead role of Hitman
Hitman (2007 film)
Hitman is a 2007 film directed by Xavier Gens and based on the video game series of the same name. A gun-for-hire "Hitman" is a genetically-engineered assassin known as Agent 47. He is hired by a group, 'The Organization' and becomes ensnared in a political conspiracy. He finds himself pursued by...
in the process. Production of the futuristic thriller about genetic manipulation was slated to begin in June 2006. By February 2007, filming was slated to wrap in April to release Babylon A.D. in time for the coming Thanksgiving. In February, filming took place at Barrandov Studios
Barrandov Studios
Barrandov Studios is a famous set of film studios in Prague, Czech Republic. It is the largest film studio in the country and one of the largest in Europe.Several of the movies filmed there won Academy Awards...
. In March 2007, the filming crew, having shot in the Czech Republic, took a two-week hiatus to deal with uncooperative weather, such as the lack of snow, and problems with set construction. Crew members scouted Iceland for locations with snow to shoot six to eight days of footage, which was supposed to be done in February. Filming was also done with the leads Diesel, Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng is a Hong Kong-based Malaysian Chinese actress, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s....
, and Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry
Mélanie Thierry, is a French actress best known to international audiences for her role as Aurora in the 2008 film Babylon A.D.-Biography:...
in Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
in March. The French visual effects company BUF Compagnie
BUF Compagnie
BUF Compagnie is a French visual effects company, specializing in CGI for feature films, commercials, and music videos.-History:Based in Paris, France and Los Angeles, California, BUF Compagnie was founded by Pierre Buffin in 1984...
was contracted to develop the film's effects under the supervision of Stephane Ceretti.
In April 2007, Babylon A.D. was reported to be over-budget and three weeks behind schedule. A lack of snow meant a skiing sequence to be shot in Eastern Europe had to be moved to Sweden. Later in the month, actor Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson
Lambert Wilson is a French actor. He is internationally known for his portrayal of The Merovingian in The Matrix He was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of Georges Wilson, who was an actor, theatrical manager and director of the Theatre National de Paris.Wilson screen tested for The...
was cast into the film. Filming was completed in May 2007.
American artist Khem Caigan designed the sigil
Sigil (magic)
A sigil is a symbol created for a specific magical purpose. A sigil is usually made up of a complex combination of several specific symbols or geometric figures, each with a specific meaning or intent.- Name and origin :...
that appears as a tattoo on the right side of Toorop's neck - an emblem which originally appeared in the Schlangekraft Necronomicon in 1977.
Mathieu Kassovitz
Mathieu Kassovitz
Mathieu Kassovitz is a French director, screenwriter, producer and actor, best known for his Cannes-winning drama La Haine. Kassovitz is also the founder of MNP Entreprise, a film production company....
said that 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
interfered throughout production, and he never had a chance to shoot a scene the way it was scripted, or the way he wanted it to be.
Music
The music of Babylon A.D. was written by Icelandic composer Atli ÖrvarssonAtli Örvarsson
Atli Örvarsson is an Icelandic film score composer. He is a member of Hans Zimmer's production company Remote Control Productions.- Filmography :-External links:*...
. The musical alliance Achozen
Achozen
Achozen [pronounced: UH-choh-zen] is a project by System of a Down bassist Shavo Odadjian, Wu-Tang Clan member RZA, Killarmy member Kinetic 9, and Wu-Tang Clan affiliate Reverend William Burke...
, represented by Shavo Odadjian
Shavo Odadjian
Shavarsh "Shavo" Odadjian is an Armenian American songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music video director/editor, music producer, and artist/painter. He is best known as the bassist, backing vocalist and occasional songwriter of the Grammy Award-winning rock band System of a Down...
and RZA performed the score for the film. Music producer Hans Zimmer
Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film composer and music producer. He has composed music for over 100 films, including critically acclaimed film scores for The Lion King , Crimson Tide , The Thin Red Line , Gladiator , The Dark Knight and Inception .Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the...
described the intended style: "Musically, our objective was to merge the sounds and energies of hip hop with classical music, seamlessly melting them into an unusual soundscape."
Release
Babylon A.D. was originally stated to be released in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on February 29, 2008, but its release was postponed to August 29, 2008. As of January 31, 2009, the film grossed $22,532,572 in the United States and $49,573,118 in foreign countries totaling a worldwide gross of $72,105,690 . The film was placed #2 behind Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder is a 2008 American action satire comedy film written, produced, and directed by Ben Stiller, and starring Stiller, Robert Downey, Jr., and Jack Black. The main plot revolves around a group of prima donna actors who are making a Vietnam War film...
with $9,484,267 in 3,390 theaters with a $2,798 average. The film has the eighth-highest 4-day Labor Day gross since 1982. Despite its box office gross of over $71 million, the film is considered a very minor success considering its production budget of $70 million.
Reception
The film was almost universally panned by critics. MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
compiles a 26% rating based on 15 reviews. Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
gives the film a 7% approval rating based on 98 reviews (91 negative, 7 positive).
Blu-ray and DVD
Babylon A.D. was released on January 6, 2009 on Blu-ray Disc and DVD. The single disc included no features but contained the theatrical version and (on the reverse side) the unrated version. The two disc unrated edition contained only the unrated version, which ran ten minutes longer than the theatrical cut. It also included four behind-the-scenes featurettes, a digital graphic novel prequel to the film, a still gallery, and a digital copy. The two disc Blu-ray contained all of that plus an exclusive picture-in-picture feature. In Europe only the unrated version has been released.The unrated version differed greatly from the theatrical version. The ending was cut short and did not show the full-length ending that was in the theatrical version, followed by more expletives. Other short scenes were put in as well.
External links
- Babylon A.D. on MovieSet
- Babylon A.D. at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
- Babylon A.D. at Box Office MojoBox Office MojoBox Office Mojo is a website that tracks box office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. Brandon Gray started the site in 1999. In 2002, Gray partnered with Sean Saulsbury and they grew the site to nearly two million readers when, in July 2008, the company was purchased by Amazon.com through...