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Babies
Babies
BABIES – DVD MovieThe babies in Babies are four newborns, photographed in their natural habitat in distinctly different parts of the world. Hattie is in San Francisco, Mari’s in Tokyo, Baryarjargal lives out in the Mongolian steppes, and Ponijao is born amid the simple straw huts of Namibia. In the course of less than 80 minutes, we’re going to follow this quartet through their first year of life, a chronicle that director Thomas Balmes and producer Alain Chabat have likened to a nature documentary that happens to focus on humans. We can cut to the chase here and say that above and beyond any sociological weight this project might possess, this film’s main method can be summed up in the words of David Byrne and Talking Heads from the song “Stay Up Late”: “See him drink / From a bottle / See him eat / From a plate / Cute cute / As a button /Don’t you want to make him stay up late.” In short, babies are cute, babies are funny, and a camera focused on a baby is going to catch the sudden m
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RMurray847 "afilmcritic.com"
August 15, 2011 at 7:03 am
BABIES is cute, funny and sometimes moving.,
BABIES is a feel good movie that arguably has absolutely no point, or is very profound. It is a documentary that essentially films the first year or so in the lives of 4 babies from vastly different parts of the globe. We simply observe them eating, evacuating, smiling, discovering their toes, learning to crawl, learning to play, and so on. Certainly babies are cute, and it’s easy to get an adult audience to smile with and laugh at these silly little creatures.
That could be the point of BABIES…”look, how cute.” And frankly, it’s pretty satisfying on that level alone. But it could also be showing us, and the most basic levels, how we’re all so VERY similar, at least when we start out. That all of us, whether from Namibia, Mongolia, Tokyo or San Francisco…we all have so very much in common. That’s a simple, almost clichéd “lesson”, but BABIES presents it in a clear and undeniable manner.
I very much appreciated the underlying points to ponder of BABIES…but mostly it was just a 79 minute delight. It’s a wonderful cultural lesson: short after birth, we see the Namibian baby essentially spending his time completely nude and the little Mongolian child swaddled tightly in many layers. Both are valid child-rearing approaches…but are starkly different and both are moving. Seeing the Mongolian child wrapped like a cocoon is a startling image…yet given his stark and cold surrounding environment…it is a way for his family to show their love and caring for this child when they are unable to physically be there holding the baby.
The Mongolian child was my favorite (although I liked all the kids)…and I suspect each person will have their own favorite. For American viewers, the San Francisco baby may either strike a strong chord, or may seem to be the least interesting. The Mongolian child was interesting because he was so darn cute, but also because he had a deep relationship with the animals that were such a part of his family’s farm: roosters, cows, goats, cats, etc. You can see how this tiny child will grow up to care for and understand the animals in his charge, because being around them is as natural as breathing. I found all those scenes to be rather touching.
Do be sure to enjoy contrasting the American child-raising to the styles around the world. One of my favorite moments: we see a toddler aged Namibian baby enjoying sitting outside his hut with his extended family, enjoying tribal music in the very area of the world it originated in. It feels integrated and RIGHT. Then we cut to the American girl, who is with her father participating in a group with lots of other kids and parents, sitting in a circle in a classroom, singing “Native American” songs and clapping their hands in a “tribal” rhythm. The American baby leaps up and runs screaming to the door of the room, trying to get out. The audience I saw this with just busted out laughing…we all saw the irony of an African child enjoying African music and an American child balking at enjoying “fake” African music. Draw your own political conclusions.
If you’ve seen the trailer for this film and enjoyed it…then you WILL enjoy the movie. It’s just more of that. Simple and sometimes moving. And while there’s lots of baby nudity and topless women in Africa…the movie is suited for the whole family, in my opinion.
(PS: It’s a French movie, but that makes no difference. There is no “dialogue” or narration…nor is it needed. Sure, you understand what the American parents are saying…but believe me, when you hear the Mongolian boy say “papa” for the first time…you don’t need a translator.)
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|Gary Peterson
August 15, 2011 at 6:36 am
Relax and Enjoy!,
A short time ago, my wife and I were joined by a new baby and our remarkable little boy is now at 19 months. The baby was a first for both of us and neither of us had almost any prior experience with an infant. Everything that unfolded was new and a very interesting experience. When my wife spotted the new “Babies” movie, we just had to see it. We both enjoyed it very much and will be buying the DVD when it becomes available.
The movie is a very unusual documentary of four babies in four different parts of the world (San Francisco, Tokyo, Mongolia and Namibia) and four different cultures. There is no story. There are no spoken words, only background sounds. The movie goes from scene to scene, back and forth, back and forth from baby to baby and location to location. We watched with fascination as each baby learned to adapt and cope with it’s new life as it unfolded in it’s particular environment. Very interesting to watch. We cringed at some of the baby experiences and laughed at others. Of course, we had our own living example for comparison and it has promoted a wealth of conversation.
If you have a newborn/toddler, be sure to see this movie. You’ll enjoy it immensely. Actually,babies are so interesting and humorous that almost anyone could enjoy the film. It’s a very unusual movie to view. The photography in the various settings is excellent. The sound is good. Relax and enjoy.
Gary Peterson
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