Margot Robbieis still befuddled about whyBabylonflopped two Christmases ago.
For some it might be a strange thing to linger on.
Like when you hear thatShawshank Redemptionwas a failure at the time and youre like, How is that possible?
For a certain breed of movie buff and cinephile,Babylonwould seem to check every box.
Drug overdoses, [alcohol], and its unclear whether it was suicide or accidental…
It is part and parcel to a feverish vision of Hollywood brilliance and blight living together in sin.
It also taps into the mythological by revitalizing a world that no longer exists.
The appeal might be niche but it remans everlasting.
Mess That Is Blessed
None of which is to sayBabylonis a perfect movie or some overlooked masterpiece.
(Although even then Tobey Maguire gives a delightfully batshit performance as the gangster.)
Bandwagon thinking and engagement-generating hyperbole is rewarded.
But the true cult classics are not about what a group or online community thinks today.
Robbies comparison toShawshank Redemptionfeels, again, inaccurate.
That is a movie which has a very crowd-friendly and kind-hearted disposition.
Some might even say saccharine.
Take, for example, Ridley Scotts aloof and slipperyBlade Runner.
For audiences who came to it after its initial box office failure, however, that didnt matter.
This includes clips from films as disparate and incongruous asJurassic Park(1993) andSunstone(1979).
Some likely view that ambition by Chazelle as audacious.
