Mathieu Kassovitz, it seems, is
his own worst critic. The French actor-director, still perhaps best known as
the nerdy object of Audrey Tautou's affection in Amelie, recently teed off on Babylon
A.D., his new sci-fi flick starring Vin Diesel as a futuristic version of Jason Statham's Transporter character:
"I'm very unhappy with the
film," Kassovitz ranted to AMC. "I never had a chance to do one scene
the way it was written or the way I wanted it to be. The script wasn't
respected. Bad producers, bad partners, it was a terrible experience."
Kassovitz, who described parts of
the movie as "like a bad episode of 24," places the blame squarely on
the shoulder of studio backer 20th Century Fox. Fox, ironically, also happens
to produce TV's 24.
Look on the bright side, sci-fi fans:
Babylon A.D.
may not be the second coming of Blade Runner, but it should provide for the best DVD
director's commentary ever.