Babel

Name: Babel
Genre: Drama
Released: 2006-10-26
Duration: 2 h 23 min
Rating: 7.4
Cast: Brad Pitt, Rinko Kikuchi, Adriana Barraza, Cate Blanchett, Satoshi Nikaido

If You Want to be Understood... Listen.

Babel (2006)

Timing: 2:23 (143 min)

7.4/10
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7.4/10
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Everything about the movie

Video 7

Photo 34

Actors and characters

Video for the film Babel — Babel - Trailer

2:28

Photo 34

Release date

2006-10-26

Country

France, Mexico, United States

Production

Anonymous Content, Central Films, Zeta Film

Genre

Drama

Budget

$25 000 000

Box office

$135 330 182

Website

Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu

Actors

Brad Pitt, Rinko Kikuchi, Adriana Barraza, Cate Blanchett, Satoshi Nikaido, Said Tarchani, Boubker Ait El Caid, Gael García Bernal, Nathan Gamble, Elle Fanning
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Guillermo Arriaga

Producer

Steve Golin, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Jon Kilik, Ann Ruark, Corinne Golden Weber

Camera operator

Rodrigo Prieto

Composer

Gustavo Santaolalla

Artist

Brigitte Broch

Audition

Editing

Stephen Mirrione, Douglas Crise
Whole Team (37)

Short description

In Babel, a tragic incident involving an American couple in Morocco sparks a chain of events for four families in different countries throughout the world.

What's left behind the scenes

The scene featuring Rinko Kikuchi's character and her father in the car was filmed without an official filming permit from the city authorities (due to the local bureaucratic system). The filming attracted the attention of the police.
Seventeen days before filming began in Morocco, the film's authors still hadn't cast the actors. Announcements were made on local television and radio (excluding mosques) seeking actors. Over 200 people offered their services within the following 24 hours. Almost all of them participated in the filming – either in significant roles or as extras.
Boubker Ait El Kaid was invited to audition for the role of Youssef (a young Moroccan boy who caused a lot of trouble with his father's rifle) after director Alejandro González Iñárritu saw him playing football in a local town square.
Babylon is written as 'Babylon' in English. However, the film is titled 'Babel' in the original – this is the English spelling of the word 'Babylon' as pronounced in Arabic or Hebrew.
Adriana Barraza gained nearly 16 kg for the role of Amelia.
Cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto encountered a problem while filming a scene in which Cate Blanchett's wounded character is carried up a slope. He tried several times to get the necessary shots by walking backward, but he tripped and fell every time. The director forbade the use of a Steadicam, insisting on a handheld camera. In the end, Prieto filmed the scene while sitting on a chair carried by four people.
Actress Adriana Barraza actually has heart problems and has even had two mild attacks. Despite this, she herself carried her co-star Elle Fanning for two days of filming the corresponding scene in the desert.
Rinko Kikuchi went through a year-long audition process for the role of Chieko before finally being cast.
Bobker Ait El Kaid was invited to audition for the role of Youssef (the little Moroccan boy who got into a lot of trouble with his father's rifle) after film director Alejandro González Iñárritu saw him playing football in a local town square.
Brad Pitt turned down one of the lead roles in the film 'The Departed' (2006) (of which he was a co-producer) to take part in this movie, as he had long been a fan of Alejandro González Iñárritu's films.
Actress Adriana Barraza actually has heart problems and has even suffered two mild attacks. Despite this, she personally carried her co-star Elle Fanning in her arms during two days of filming the relevant scene in the desert.
Rinko Kikuchi went through a year-long audition process for the role of Chieko.
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga had a falling out over the screen credits. It all began during their work on their previous joint project, the thriller 21 Grams (2003). Arriaga argued that everything in cinema is interconnected and that both he and Iñárritu should be credited as directors, while Iñárritu maintained that he alone should be credited as director. As a result, Iñárritu did not take Arriaga with him to the Cannes Film Festival in 2006, which triggered a wave of criticism against him.
Adriana Barraza gained almost 16 kg for the role of Amelia.
Brad Pitt turned down one of the leading roles in "The Departed" (2006) (of which he was a co-producer) in order to participate in this film, as he had long been a fan of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s films.
Cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto faced a problem while filming the scene in which the wounded Kate Blanchett's character is carried up a slope. He tried several times to get the necessary shots by walking backwards, but each time he tripped and fell on something. The director forbade the use of a 'Steadicam', insisting on handheld camera work. In the end, Prieto filmed the scene sitting on a chair carried by four people.
Brad Pitt turned down one of the leading roles in 'The Departed' (2006) – of which he was also an executive producer – in order to participate in this film, as he had long been a fan of Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s films.
Filming took place from May 2nd to December 1st, 2005.
The scene with Rinko Kikuchi and her father in the car was filmed without official permission from the city authorities (due to local bureaucracy). The filming attracted the attention of the police.
Boubker Ait El Kaid was invited to audition for the role of Youssef (a young Moroccan boy who caused a great deal of trouble with his father's rifle) after the film's director, Alejandro González Iñárritu, saw him playing soccer in a local town square.
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga had a falling out over the crediting of names. It began during their previous collaboration – the thriller '21 Grams' (2003). Arriaga argued that everything in cinema is interconnected, and that both he and Iñárritu should be credited as directors, while Iñárritu insisted that he alone should be credited as the director. As a result, Iñárritu did not take Arriaga with him to the 2006 Cannes International Film Festival, which drew a wave of criticism.
Rinko Kikuchi went through the casting process for the role of Tiko for a year.
In the final part of the film, a helicopter with the wounded Susan flies past the main attraction of Casablanca – the Hassan II Mosque.
Cate Blanchett considered withdrawing from the project, but ultimately decided against it, enticed by the opportunity to work with director Alejandro González Iñárritu.
Cate Blanchett considered withdrawing from the project, but ultimately decided against it, tempted by the opportunity to work with director Alejandro González Iñárritu.