Babylon A.D. parents guide

Babylon A.D. Parent Guide

Overall D+

When a mercenary named Toorop (Vin Diesel) agrees to safely escort a young woman (Melanie Thierry) across the globe, he quickly discovers she's no ordinary girl. It is a dangerous mission that will try all his survival skills and have him questioning his killer instincts.

Release date August 28, 2008

Violence D
Sexual Content B+
Profanity D+
Substance Use C+

Why is Babylon A.D. rated PG-13? The MPAA rated Babylon A.D. PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality

Run Time: 90 minutes

Parent Movie Review

If Babylon A.D. is a glimpse of the future, then the outlook is grim. Gun-toting vigilantes patrol the streets outside of decaying, vandalized compounds. Crowded transportation systems are regular targets of bombings and shootings, yet refugees still claw their way aboard trains and boats seeking for a safe haven in a world ruled by terrorists and trained killers. In short, the milk of human kindness has fermented into the sick liquor of kill or be killed.

Among the citizens of this degenerate society is Toorop (Vin Diesel), a paid mercenary living in the squalor of a ravaged Russian community. After hacking up the bloody corpse of a rabbit for dinner, his meal is interrupted by a swarm of rifle-packing militants who blow off the door and storm his apartment. Their boss, Gorsky (GŽrard Depardieu), has a package to be delivered to America and promises to supply Toorop with a fake identity and passport (implanted on a microchip in his neck) that will allow the ex-Veteran to slip past the U.S. border authorities.

Arranging a special pick-up, (Toorop’s car is literally picked up by a huge magnet hanging from a helicopter and hauled off to a secret location outside of a monastery) the mercenary meets Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh) and her mysterious ward Aurora (MŽlanie Thierry). His assignment, he discovers, is to get the girl safely to New York.

However, this is no average UPS delivery. Sister Rebeka is slow to reveal the girl’s background, putting Toorop and his charges in danger from religious fanatics and scientists who are battling for supremacy in the futuristic society. Both, it seems, want the girl with a special power that will further their causes. As the bullets begin to fly, Toorop’s obligation forces him to fight off hordes of rival mobsters, missile-shooting rebels and a bloody cage fighter.

Carrying enough firepower to start a small revolution, these characters blast their way from one scene to the next with only a dab of story or character development. Gruesome scenes of dead animals, point-blank shootings and explosive blasts send the violence quotient skyrocketing while profanities and a sexual expletive riddle the script. Wrapping up with a hasty conclusion that is neither satisfying nor sensible, Babylon A.D. is a disappointing adaptation of Maurice G. Dantec’s novel Babylon Babies. A dark prediction of an atrophying world overrun by hired guns and unrestrained extremists, the film offers a future bathed in blood, short on hope and just plain painful to watch.

Starring Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Lambert Wilson, Melanie Thierry.. Running time: 90 minutes. Theatrical release August 28, 2008. Updated

Babylon A.D.
Rating & Content Info

Why is Babylon A.D. rated PG-13? Babylon A.D. is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some sexuality

Scenes of murders, bombs, exploding missiles and hand-to-hand combat are nearly constant in this futuristic story of a decaying society. Characters are threatened, shot at close range, beaten and fired upon by military airplanes. Bloody injuries and death are the result of the attacks. Dead animals, humans with missing limbs, car crashes and barbaric living conditions are also depicted. A man is choked to death, and refugees (including babies and young children) are shot at or drowned while attempting to board a rescue ship. Scientific experimentation results in cloning, viral infections and artificially intelligent super humans. Religious fanatics use violence to promote their beliefs. In a sensual scene, characters are shown wearing only a towel and underwear. A brief sexual comment is made. Short portrayals of alcohol and cigarette use are shown. Profanities, including a strong sexual expletive, and other vulgarities are used throughout the script.

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Babylon A.D. Parents' Guide

Why do films often portray future society as dark and decaying? Is humanity making decisions today that will lead to that kind of civilization?

What impact does the constant violence seem to have on Toorop and other members of the community? What changes his outlook?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Babylon A.D. movie is January 6, 2009. Here are some details…

Release Date: 6 January 2009

The theatrical and unrated cut of Babylon A.D. is releasing to DVD in widescreen, with audio tracks in 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround (English) and Dolby Surround (Spanish and French). Subtitles are available in English, Spanish and French.The duel-layer disc includes three featurettes: Babylon Babies (taking author Maurice G. Dantec’s novel from page to screen) and Arctic Escape (creating the snow mobile chase).

Babylon A.D. is also releasing as a Special Edition DVD With Digital Copy. This 2-disc set offers a digital copy of the film and the unrated cut (presented in widescreen). Audio tracks are available in 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround (English) and Dolby Surround (Spanish and French), with subtitles in English, Spanish and French.Bonus features include: Babylon Babies (taking author Maurice G. Dantec’s novel from page to screen), and Arctic Escape (creating the snow mobile chase), along with Fit For The Screen (more about the martial arts and stunts of the film), Flight of the Hummers (dissecting the Humvee chase), Genesis of Aurora ( the graphic novel which preceded Babylon A.D.) and a still gallery.

The Babylon A.D. Blu-ray Disc With Digital Copy is authored in BD on a dual-layer 50 GB disc with English 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio and French 5.1 Dolby Digital. Subtitles are available in English, Spanish, French, Cantonese, Korean and Mandarin. In addition to the extras provided on the standard definition two-disc DVD, this version offers Interactive Scene Evolution (in BonusVIEW Mode) of various sets in the movie.

 

Related home video titles:

Vin Diesel accepts another babysitting assignment as a special operative sent to protect a houseful of unruly siblings in The Pacifier. Other films like I Am Legend, Day After Tomorrow, and Reign of Fire all deal with futuristic societies beleaguered by zombies, global warming or unearthed dragons.