Watching Babel was both nice and confusing at the same time. While I was constantly paying attention thanks to the good story telling, the movie left with me with some questions. Why is there so much being told about that Japanese girl? Why is so much detailed information given about her personal life and the death of her mother? Wasn’t it just about her father who was connected to the Morrocon gun owner?

Without giving too much information, I think that pretty much sums it up. Don’t get me wrong however, it is a real treat to watch this movie and I already feel like watching it again. And not just to see if I can figure out the who, what and why. It takes a grip onto you the way only arthouse movies normally do. You feel compelled with almost every character, bar the Japanese girl, and the way they are introduced and combined during time is brilliant. This is a real story, not just some lame action packed thirteen out of a dozen Hollywood movie. Credits go to director Alejandro González Iñárritu, since his previous movie (21 Grams) was easily as impressive.

Apart from the movie itself, video and audio were also good. However, video suffered a bit from graining, even in clear shots like the one in the hospital. I mean, you expect grainy shots in the Morrocon desert, but in a hospital? Apart from that though the image is colorful and crisp. Audio is a bare minimum Dolby Digital 5.1 track and although this isn’t a special effects rich movie, you would expect at least a lossless HD audio track for a movie from 2006. But it suffices for this movie, apart from the few action sequences in Morroco.