‘Babe’ review — Marisa Tomei-led punk play hits wobbly notes
6 / 10
Instead, it’s fellow record producer Abigail (Marisa Tomei) and Kat jamming to Bikini Kill’s “Rebel Girl,” the riot grrrl inspiration for Kat’s persona and oeuvre. Babe is more imitative than innovative, copying not just musicians but the social politics of workplace harassment more skillfully explored by other writers. Tomei’s celebrity will attract audiences, but her performance mostly consists of blurting through awkward encounters and grooving to each new artist Katherine brings to work. (A final confrontation between Abigail and Gus finally delivers emotional satisfaction, though Abigail’s sudden change of heart arrives too swiftly.) The characters also speak of music like it’s foreign, its comforts a secret to anyone outside the industry, with only vague descriptors.
