Rivers of Babylon (1998)

Dark satire about bare-knuckled capitalism in the immediate post-Cold War era. Set just as the Communist government is collapsing, the film focuses on the brutish Racz, the handyman in a Bratislava hotel. Knowing that his job is insured for life, Racz turns off the building's heat and demands food, money, and sex to have it restored. The film is narrated by a pimp named Urban who explains that people in the former Czechoslovakia were so used to being abused that they simply put up with Racz's corruption. By the end of the film, Racz's fortunes have changed considerably. Instead of being a lowly worker, he is now a ruthless and wealthy businessman, unafraid to kill or kidnap those who get in his way.

Date of release
1998-04-23
TMDB
4.5 / 10 (5)
Runtime
1h 42m
Genres
Comedy, Drama
Director
Vladimír Balco

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Awards: 0 · Nominations: 1

Rivers of Babylon is a 1998 Slovak comedy film directed by Vlado Balco. The film was selected as the Slovak entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 71st Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. The film is based on the 1991 novel of the same name by Peter Pišťanek.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

Recommended