There are few things more annoying than an intentionally vague science fiction plot. “Babylon A.D.”--based on Maurice G. Dantec’s novel “Babylon Babies”--takes great pains to keep audiences in the dark, only to bombard them with a series of revelations that not only make little sense, but are also difficult to accept at face value. I tried my hardest to understand what was going on and why, and while I think I now have the gist of it, I’m still left with a lot of unanswered questions. I have a feeling diehard science fiction buffs will get this movie and love it. As I left the theater, it was suggested that liking “Babylon A.D.” would depend on whether or not one reads science fiction; if that’s true, this movie is nothing but an elitist showcase. Vin Diesel fans may not get the story, but hey, at least they’ll get to see him in another action film. It’s doubtful, however, that this movie will connect with general audiences, especially if they prefer stories that can actually be followed.

The plot, as far as I can tell, is as follows. Sometime in the future, when technology and big-name corporations have consumed Western society, an American mercenary living in Russia is called on to smuggle a young woman into New York. This man, named Toorop (Diesel), was once a veteran before being exiled from the United States; he now lives by the survivor’s code, never trusting anyone and always playing by his own rules. The young woman, named Aurora (Mélanie Thierry), was raised in an isolated Mongolian convent, away from technology and all manner of temptation. Her protector, Sister Rebeka (Michelle Yeoh), makes one thing perfectly clear: the less exposure Aurora has to the outside world, the better.

No one seems to know why until the three start moving through Russia and across the Bering Strait as refugees; not only does Aurora frequently shift from complacent to emotionally distraught, she also seems to possess special abilities, such as being able to sense explosives and knowing how to operate a thirty-year-old submarine and feeling death. According to Rebeka, Aurora could speak nineteen languages by age two. Maybe this has something to do with why opposing forces are after her. One is a religious sect led by the conniving High Priestess (Charlotte Rampling); with the help of a self-serving Russian named Gorsky (Gérard Depardieu), she arranges for Toorop to smuggle Aurora into America, away from a group led by a scientist named Darquandier (Lambert Wilson). When the package is delivered, Aurora will apparently be the key to creating a superior, genetically modified messiah.

I’m making it sound more straightforward than it actually is. So much of this movie relies on secrecy, which would have been okay had the explanations made any sense. The implications are clear: in a now corporate-run society, a cult wants to gain power as the world’s dominant religion, and they can reach their goals with the help of a super intelligent, scientifically engineered young woman. But implications can only take you so far. It’s not enough to merely suspect what’s going on. This is the kind of story that demands a great deal more than vague ideas and passing references. Maybe the film’s ninety-minute length is to blame; it’s quite possible the answers I sought were left on the cutting room floor. Consider Diesel’s broadly drawn character, a man who emotionally kept his distance until Aurora came into his life. How this change came about is anyone’s guess, but since Diesel’s acting range is just shy of nonexistent, I guess it doesn’t really matter.

But Aurora is the most frustrating character, mostly because the way she acts throughout the film isn’t consistent with how and why she was created in the first place. There are times when she’s cool and collected, while at other times she’s militantly opposed to death and destruction, all of which she can sense beforehand. She seemed less like a miracle girl and more like a poster child for Bipolar Disorder. The way she interacts with Torrop is difficult to believe, especially as their feelings for one another deepen. It doesn’t feel like a developing love so much as it feels like a plot device for creating more drama. It certainly didn’t do much for the ending, which is so badly written that it might generate incredulous laughter.

What can I say in defense of this movie? Well, it was good-looking. I was particularly impressed with the futuristic New York City, the best-designed city skyline since “Blade Runner.” Every block is an explosion of technology, from choreographed neon lights to electronic images projected onto skyscrapers. Unfortunately, we never get to fully appreciate it--the shots come and go far too quickly. Most of the New York scenes take place on an isolated street, specifically the intersection where the climactic battle is fought. As fleeting as it was, this was still the only decent action this movie had to offer; every other action scene was lightening-fast and shaky, distracting us from seeing all the good fight moves. But the great failure of “Babylon A.D.” was telling a needlessly vague story about inappropriately mysterious characters. I’m sure select audiences will embrace this movie as a pinnacle work of science fiction, and they will no doubt see things in it that I failed to see. Let it be known that, for someone who doesn’t read science fiction on a regular basis, I did the best I could.

- Chris Pandolfi

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