61° Mostly CloudyStories for November 4, 2006
Latin
Richard and Martha discuss how Latin lives on in many English words and phrases.
Babel
The film's title draws on the biblical story of the Tower of Babel in which a vengeful God punishes mankind for its arrogance in attempting to build a tower to the heavens. As punishment, God separates mankind into different races divided by different languages. The end result being that communication is greatly hindered. In the 21st century, I & ntilde; & aacute;rritu finds that we still have difficulty communicating, and that things such as 9/11, fear of terrorism, immigration and globalization all serve to complicate the process even further. I & ntilde; & aacute;rritu also suggests that the media exacerbates the problem as it translates events into news stories, but this provocative tangent is severely underdeveloped.
Tideland
Terry Gilliam, one of the founding members of the Monty Python Troupe, continues to expand his catalogue of fantastical films with an adaptation of Mitch Cullins cult novel
