Early reactions to Damien Chazelle's decadent look at Old Hollywood are extremely mixed

One of my most anticipated movies of the year, Babylon, is being shredded on social media. Damien Chazelle's latest feature film is just hitting theaters 23rd of Decemberbut initial reactions to the film are pouring in. They're blended stronger than a Bourbon Old Fashioned prepared by Fritz at Reese's 1890 in Long Island, New York, and we're here to collect some of the most extreme comments.

According to the official synopsis for BabylonThe movie is "An original epic set in 1920's Los Angeles, directed by Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie and Diego Calva, with an ensemble cast that includes Jovan Adepo, Li Jun Li and Jean Smart. A tale of outrageous ambition and outrageous excess, Babylon chronicles the rise and fall of multiple characters in an era of rampant decadence and depravity in early Hollywood.”

Babylon stars Margot Robbie, Brad Pitt, Diego Calva, Tobey Maguire and more, who indulged in extreme debauchery during Hollywood's transition from silent to talkies in the 1920s. The early reactions to Babylon range from the ultra-positive to the disturbingly negative, with some calling the film a "hot mess" of drug-infested mayhem. Several reviewers note Robbie and Calva's outstanding performances, while others say Babylon is tonally unpredictable.

#Babylon feels like someone reads Damien Chazelle the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and then he says, "Hold my beer!"
High octane cocaine inducing trip. The first half is great. Probably the new favorite movie of all time on the internet. Margot Robbie and Justin Hurwitz are your stars. pic.twitter.com/aM3rru1so0

– Clayton Davis – Standing with 🇺🇦 (@ByClaytonDavis) November 15, 2022

BABYLON what a movie! A declaration of love to the cinema. Damien Chazelle's Best Movie! I loved it! What a wild fun time at the cinema! Margot Robbie delivers a high octane performance that took my breath away! Bravo! #BabylonMovie #Babylon #MargotRobbie

— Josh Blumenkranz (@Josh Blumenkranz) November 15, 2022

#Babylon/#BabylonMovie is a daring Hollywood epic that completely shocks the senses. Margot Robbie and Diego Calva put in great performances. Damien Chazelle brings his signature musicianship and movement throughout. Justin Hurwitz's score is one hell of a wall of sound. pic.twitter.com/RTlL9WhaKa

— Jeff Nelson (@SirJeffNelson) November 15, 2022

Babylon is an ambitious mess of a movie. I don't even know where to start with this, but the sound is everywhere. Margot Robbie tries, but the script fails. A declaration of love to cinema that made me hate cinema. #BabylonMovie pic.twitter.com/BnKQiOz2Zd

— Scott Menzel (@ScottDMenzel) November 15, 2022

Chazelle's BABYLON is DAY OF THE LOCUST crossed with WOLF OF WALL STREET and SINGIN IN THE RAIN with BOOGIE NIGHTS as the structural template (with Tobey Maguire in the position of Alfred Molina!). In other words, I loved every 180+ minutes of it.

— Jim Hemphill (@JimmyHemphill) November 15, 2022

#Babylon is definitely a wild ride! But it's also an interesting and wacky journey to relive the history of Hollywood and cinema. I love the music and the top-class cast. #MargotRobbie really gives everything. She is sensational. Li Jun Li steals the show every time she appears on screen. pic.twitter.com/xt6TUqE6sV

— Maggie Ma (@MaggieMa_LA) November 15, 2022

BABYLON: Truly monstrous in its booming insistence on shoving the viewer's face in the dirt and pretending it's something new or moving; Chazelle may be the most confident director in Hollywood today, but of course he also has some of the worst instincts out there.

— Ryan Swen/孙天行/Sun Tianxing (@swen_ryan) November 15, 2022

Damien Chazelle wanted to make a film set during the murky, decadent transition from silent film to sound. He created characters (played by Diego Calvo, Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt) that follow this path. Shot 180 pages of script at about a minute per page. Babylon is great fun.

— Anne Thompson (@akstanwyck) November 15, 2022

I have some really - really - bad news to share with you, #Babylonis a flaming hot mess, a sonic disaster, by far Damien Chazelle's worst movie and one of the worst movies of 2022 💀

— Erick MMT Weber (@ErickWeber) November 15, 2022

#Babylon has some incredibly strong sequences - especially the ones that focus on Margot Robbie's character - but overall it lacked focus and wasn't able to support as many key characters. There's a lot of interesting ideas in there, but the manic graphics and story structure work for some and not others. pic.twitter.com/ZF6SJLeoXc

— Perri Nemiroff (@PNemiroff) November 15, 2022

While some viewers may not appreciate Chazelle's approach to portraying a troubled Hollywood, others seem to embrace the chaos. Also many reviewers praise Babylon's elaborate stage and costume design. Still, strong negative reactions to the film could be linked to Brad Pitt, who is under fire over ongoing allegations of Angelina Jolie's child molestation.

The general audience will have to wait until December 23rd to form an opinion on what's the best way to tell if Babylon speaks to you I'm excited to see Babylonnegative reactions to the film notwithstanding, although I'll wait until it's on Blu-ray to head to the party.

What do you think of the early reactions? Babylon? Are these reviews legit, or did some reviewers sniff a line too many before posting their gut feelings on social media? A film that feels Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas in Old Hollywood sounds like a great time, even though the presentation can be manic and out of hand at the best of times. Bring it on, I say.