Babel
Four interlocking stories connected by a single gun converge at the end to reveal a complex and tragic story of the lives of humanity around the world and how we truly aren't all that different. In Morocco, a troubled married couple are on vacation trying to work out their differences. Meanwhile, a Moroccan herder buys a rifle for his sons so they can keep the jackals away from his herd. A girl in Japan dealing with rejection, the death of her mother, the emotional distance of her father, her own self-consciousness, and a disability among many other issues, deals with modern life in the enormous metropolis of Tokyo, Japan. Then, on the opposite side of the world the married couple's Mexican nanny takes the couple's two children with her to her son's wedding in Mexico, only to come into trouble on the return trip. Combined, it provides a powerful story and an equally powerful looking glass into the lives of seemingly random people around the world and it shows just how connected we really are.
Despite a respectable budget of $25.0M, Babel became a commercial success, earning $135.3M worldwide—a 441% return.
1 Oscar. 45 wins & 137 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Babel (2006) showcases carefully calibrated story structure, characteristic of Alejandro González Iñárritu's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 2 hours and 23 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.2, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Richard Jones
Susan Jones
Chieko Wataya
Amelia
Yasujiro Wataya
Santiago
Ahmed
Yussef
Main Cast & Characters
Richard Jones
Played by Brad Pitt
An American tourist in Morocco struggling to save his wife after she's shot, while dealing with grief over their infant son's death.
Susan Jones
Played by Cate Blanchett
Richard's wife who is critically wounded by a stray bullet in Morocco, forcing her to confront mortality and her fractured marriage.
Chieko Wataya
Played by Rinko Kikuchi
A deaf-mute Japanese teenager struggling with isolation, sexuality, and the trauma of her mother's suicide.
Amelia
Played by Adriana Barraza
The Jones children's devoted Mexican nanny who makes a fateful decision to take them across the border to her son's wedding.
Yasujiro Wataya
Played by Koji Yakusho
Chieko's widowed father, a Japanese businessman whose rifle inadvertently triggers the international incident in Morocco.
Santiago
Played by Gael García Bernal
Amelia's nephew who drives her and the Jones children to Mexico, becoming increasingly reckless and paranoid.
Ahmed
Played by Said Tarchani
A Moroccan goat herder boy who shoots Susan accidentally while playing with his father's rifle.
Yussef
Played by Boubker Ait El Caid
Ahmed's younger brother who witnesses the shooting and struggles with guilt and fear as authorities close in.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Moroccan boys Yussef and Ahmed receive a rifle from their father to protect the goat herd from jackals. Establishes the ordinary world across multiple storylines: struggling marriage (Richard & Susan), familial duty (Moroccan brothers), caretaking (Amelia with children), isolation (Chieko in Japan).. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 16 minutes when Yussef, testing the rifle's range, shoots at a distant tour bus and accidentally hits Susan in the neck. This single act becomes the catalyst that disrupts all four storylines, setting the entire tragedy in motion and stranding Richard and Susan in a remote Moroccan village.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 35 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 24% of the runtime. This indicates the protagonist's commitment to Richard makes the active choice to stay with Susan in the dangerous situation rather than leaving her, sending the other tourists away. Amelia decides to take the children to her son's wedding in Mexico when she cannot reach Richard. These choices commit the characters to their respective Act 2 journeys into crisis., moving from reaction to action.
At 72 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Of particular interest, this crucial beat False defeat: The incident is labeled as terrorism by media, raising stakes dramatically. The US government pressures Morocco. A doctor finally arrives to help Susan, but her condition is critical. The Moroccan authorities begin hunting the boys. Stakes escalate across all storylines as the personal becomes political., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 108 minutes (76% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Multiple collapses: Ahmed is shot and killed by police (literal death). Amelia is abandoned in the desert by her nephew and arrested at the border, losing the children. Chieko's father reveals her mother's suicide (the rifle's origin story - another death). Susan comes closest to dying. All storylines reach their darkest moment., illustrates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 115 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 81% of the runtime. Synthesis of truth: The detective investigating Chieko learns the rifle was a gift to Yasujiro, connecting the storylines. Richard and Susan achieve a moment of real emotional connection. Yussef takes responsibility. Characters accept their grief, guilt, and the consequences of their failures to communicate, finding clarity through acceptance rather than triumph., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Babel's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping Babel against these established plot points, we can identify how Alejandro González Iñárritu utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Babel within the drama genre.
Alejandro González Iñárritu's Structural Approach
Among the 5 Alejandro González Iñárritu films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 6.8, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Babel represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Alejandro González Iñárritu filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional drama films include Eye for an Eye, South Pacific and Kiss of the Spider Woman. For more Alejandro González Iñárritu analyses, see Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Amores Perros and 21 Grams.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Moroccan boys Yussef and Ahmed receive a rifle from their father to protect the goat herd from jackals. Establishes the ordinary world across multiple storylines: struggling marriage (Richard & Susan), familial duty (Moroccan brothers), caretaking (Amelia with children), isolation (Chieko in Japan).
Theme
Early dialogue about language barriers and miscommunication as Richard and Susan navigate Morocco. The film establishes its central theme: the inability to communicate across cultural, linguistic, and emotional divides creates tragedy.
Worldbuilding
Introduction of all four storylines in parallel: the Moroccan boys testing the rifle in the mountains; Richard and Susan's tense marriage on a tour bus; Amelia caring for Richard's children in San Diego; Chieko's alienation as a deaf teenager in Tokyo. Each world is established with its conflicts and disconnections.
Disruption
Yussef, testing the rifle's range, shoots at a distant tour bus and accidentally hits Susan in the neck. This single act becomes the catalyst that disrupts all four storylines, setting the entire tragedy in motion and stranding Richard and Susan in a remote Moroccan village.
Resistance
Richard desperately tries to get help for Susan in the remote village while she bleeds. Amelia struggles to reach Richard by phone. The Moroccan boys realize what they've done and debate what to do. Each character resists their new reality and seeks guidance - Richard from the tour guide, Amelia from her employer, the boys from each other.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Richard makes the active choice to stay with Susan in the dangerous situation rather than leaving her, sending the other tourists away. Amelia decides to take the children to her son's wedding in Mexico when she cannot reach Richard. These choices commit the characters to their respective Act 2 journeys into crisis.
Mirror World
Amelia crosses the border into Mexico with the children, entering a world of warmth and community that contrasts with the isolation of the other storylines. This subplot carries the theme of connection vs. disconnection, showing what human warmth looks like when communication works.
Premise
The promise of the premise: watching how one bullet ripples across four continents. Richard tends to dying Susan in Morocco; Amelia enjoys the wedding celebration in Mexico with the children; the Moroccan boys flee into the mountains; Chieko navigates Tokyo's nightlife seeking connection. Each story explores isolation and attempted communication.
Midpoint
False defeat: The incident is labeled as terrorism by media, raising stakes dramatically. The US government pressures Morocco. A doctor finally arrives to help Susan, but her condition is critical. The Moroccan authorities begin hunting the boys. Stakes escalate across all storylines as the personal becomes political.
Opposition
Pressure intensifies on all fronts: Susan's condition worsens; Moroccan police close in on the boys' village; Amelia's nephew drives drunk back to the border with the children; Chieko's desperate attempts at connection grow more dangerous. Communication failures compound as authorities, language barriers, and fear create escalating misunderstandings.
Collapse
Multiple collapses: Ahmed is shot and killed by police (literal death). Amelia is abandoned in the desert by her nephew and arrested at the border, losing the children. Chieko's father reveals her mother's suicide (the rifle's origin story - another death). Susan comes closest to dying. All storylines reach their darkest moment.
Crisis
The dark night: Yussef surrenders, devastated by his brother's death. Richard processes Susan's near-death and their marriage's fragility. Amelia faces deportation and loss of the children she raised. Chieko confronts her grief and isolation. Each character sits in the emotional wreckage of communication failures.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Synthesis of truth: The detective investigating Chieko learns the rifle was a gift to Yasujiro, connecting the storylines. Richard and Susan achieve a moment of real emotional connection. Yussef takes responsibility. Characters accept their grief, guilt, and the consequences of their failures to communicate, finding clarity through acceptance rather than triumph.
Synthesis
Resolution across storylines: Susan is evacuated by helicopter; Richard holds her hand with renewed connection. Yussef is taken into custody, his father accepting responsibility. Amelia is deported, separated from the children she loved. Chieko embraces her father on their balcony, both grieving the mother/wife they lost. Justice and injustice intertwine.
Transformation
Chieko stands naked and vulnerable on her Tokyo balcony, overlooking the vast city, having finally allowed her father past her walls. The image mirrors the opening isolation but shows transformation through acceptance of grief and the possibility of human connection despite all barriers. The city lights suggest humanity's continuing struggle to communicate.