Went to see Babel last weekend, managing to hit two of the Oscar-nominated films of this year (the other was Little Miss Sunshine). At one point during the Oscars coveage a voice-overed cast member characterized the movie as pulling you from one gut-wrenching scene to the next. That describes my experience of it well. Afterwards I felt physically drained. The part I enjoyed most was the feeling of being transported to the diverse parts of the world where the action took place. And the music.