'Babel' closes the LFF

Gael García Bernal and Alejandro González Iñárritu attend the gala screening of their powerful new film.

Nov  3 2006

The 50th Times bfi London Film Festival drew to a close last night with a screening of Alejandro González Iñárritus epic 'Babel'.

The film was preceded by a series of dull speeches and awards, though it was good to see 'Red Road' director Andrea Arnold and 'This Is England' producer Mark Herbert both receiving honours for their sterling work.

Iñárritu then took to the stage to introduce his film, passionately explaining that 'Babel' is the third part in a trilogy ('Amores Perros' and '21 Grams' being parts one and two) about the complex relationship between parents and children. He also thanked all the English actors who worked on the production and said that the experience of making the films had transformed him as a person.

The film's star Gael García Bernal then joined him on stage and the pair formed something of a comedy double act, which was very funny but hardly set the tone for what was to follow.

'Babel' is the director's most beautiful, ambitious and heart-wrenching picture yet. Set in Morocco, Mexico and Tokyo, the film brilliantly interweaves four complex stories of mishap, tragedy and misunderstanding to devastating effect.

Brad Pitt gives his best performance in years as an American tourist failing to connect with his wife (Cate Blanchett) while Adriana Bazzara is a revelation as a put upon nanny and Rinko Kikuchi gives a star-making performance as a deaf schoolgirl.

It's a punishing watch, and one of the story strains seems a little irrelevant at times, but overall 'Babel' is a triumphant end to Iñárritu's remarkable trilogy – bold, courageous filmmaking from a truly significant director.

The audience then decamped to Floridita for the closing party where the dancefloor heaved, the champagne flowed freely and the Mexicans held court in the VIP area. A lovely night, it concluded what has been a wonderful festival, worthy of the event's 50th anniversary. Personal highlights include watching the brilliant 'This Is England', speaking to the irrepressible Paul Verhoeven and being kissed by Borat. Now I plan to sleep for the next year so I'm fully refreshed for 51!

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