In this section of our Colossus Movie Guide for Babylon, we talk about themes that help us understand the film.
Cast
- Nellie LaRoy – Margot Robbie
- Jack Conrad – Brad Pitt
- Manny Torres – Diego Calva
- Lady Fay Zhu – Li Jun Li
- Sidney Palmer – Jovan Adepo
- Elinor St. John – Jean Smart
- George Munn – Lukas Haas
- Ruth Adler – Olivia Hamilton
- Max – P.J. Byrne
- Robert Roy – Eric Roberts
- James McKay – Tobey Maguire
- Don Wallach – Jeff Garlin
- The Count – Rory Scovel
- Otto Von Strassberger – Spike Jonze
- Written by – Damien Chazelle
- Directed by – Damien Chazelle
The themes and meaning of Babylon
Hollywood and its cycle of promise and heartbreak
Hollywood is one of Hollywood’s favorite topics. Every few years there’s a new twist on the Sunset Boulevard story. Specifically, the promise and heartbreak Hollywood offers. You go in with big dreams. Worst case scenario, you’re crushed and have nothing to show for it. Best case scenario, you’re wildly successful but it’s just a long road to a different kind of disappointment. Mulholland Drive, The Artist, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, even something akin to Hollywood like A Star is Born. Birdman. Even Chazelle’s own La La Land.
What makes Babylon different is that it takes a grander look at the whole machine. We’re not seeing just a time capsule of early Hollywood, like in The Artist. Or just how heartbreaking the industry can be, like Mulholland Drive. Or exploring someone in the twilight of their career. Chazelle does all those things, then zooms out to say, “This is a pattern. These are archetypes. Nellie is an archetype. Jack is an archetype. Manny is an archetype. They weren’t the first of their kind. Nor will they be the last. Their stories, the highs and the lows, will repeat over and over again, for decades, for centuries.” That’s why Chazelle bookends the movie with the party. The party never stops. Different house. Different people. Same party. The same allure and promise and potential. That we know will lead to the same fallout. But…
Immortality through the contribution to something greater
Despite the personal struggles people in Hollywood face, Babylon offers hope in the form of reminding everyone involved that they become immortal. Their work transcends each individual lifespan and becomes part of the whole tapestry that is cinema. From the producers to the filmmakers to the talent to the crew, every single person matters. Whether they’re known or not. Whether they’re remembered or not. They become a ghost in the machine.
This topic first comes up when Jack confronts Elinor about the article questioning whether Jack’s career is over. Jack’s initially angry. But Elinor gives this speech about how it doesn’t matter if he’s finished now or not, because Jack’s already eternal. We see the full force of this concept when Manny returns to Hollywood and sees a movie for the first time in decades. It’s Singin’ in the Rain and it causes an out of body experience that kicks Manny and us into the astral plane of cinema. Chazelle explodes Babylon in a way that it becomes a bridge between Hollywood’s origins and 2022. Then recedes back to Manny, in the theater, satisfied. Because he knows he was part of something world defining.
What are your thoughts?
Are there more themes you think should be part of the Colossus Movie Guide for Babylon? Leave your comments below and we’ll consider updating the guide.
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