London The Modern Babylon is a 2012 British documentary directed by Julien
Temple, presented on DVD.
An epic time-travelling voyage to the heart of London.
LONDON: THE MODERN BABYLON is legendary director Julien Temple’s epic
time-travelling voyage to the heart of his hometown. From musicians, writers and
artists to dangerous thinkers, political radicals and above all ordinary people,
this is the story of London's immigrants, its bohemians and how together they
changed the city forever.
Reaching back to the dawn of film in London at the start of the 20th century,
the story unfolds through film archive, voices of Londoners past and present,
powered by the flow of popular music across the century; a stream of urban
consciousness, like the river which flows through its heart. It ends as London
prepares to welcome the world to the 2012 Olympics.
London The Modern Babylon documentary reviews
“Temple's film is refreshingly free of cliché. A very heady
experience.” The Guardian
“You’re left marvelling at London’s capacity for renewal and
reinvention.” Total Film
“A dizzying collage of all the changes in London’s social and
architectural fabric since light was first trained through celluloid.”
The Telegraph
“This is a portrait of cycles and change. But the mood of the film
suggests that we should be impressed that this ever-growing, ever-changing city
of ours is still chasing after new versions of the modern.” Time
Out London
“Temple and editor Caroline Richards demonstrate that the London mob
(it can seem like there's been only one mob through the ages) time and again
rescues the city from its complacency—and safeguards it from the suffocation
of class-bound England.” Village Voice
