At first glance, “Babies” is a simple movie. The concept behind the movie is simple genius. Shoot footage of four babies in their first year of life in four different countries. There’s virtually no dialogue (unless you count baby babble), and the scenery stays pretty much the same throughout the movie. You’ve got a hut in Africa, a yurt in Mongolia, and a couple of apartments in Tokyo and San Francisco. And film babies doing what babies do, which pretty much amounts to eating, pooping, sleeping, and crying. Sounds a bit boring, doesn’t it? But it’s not. The movie is just short of 90 minutes and my eyes stayed riveted on the screen the entire time. And I’m not much of a baby person.
What makes this movie so engaging is that we not only get a glimpse of how people live their intimate, every-day lives across these different cultures, but the cinematography is incredibly intimate. Many shots of the babies and their parents are extremely close-up, making you feel like you’re right there.
I found one of the most fascinating aspects of the movie to be how differently yet similarly we raise babies. The African baby could not only walk but also balance something on his head at the on by his family’s herd of cows and goats. But then again listen to the parents teach their babies to begin to speak and the sounds spoken are practically universal.
After I left the theater, various scenes kept coming back to me. Whether this was because of the stunning cinematography, the pure humanity or the multicultural aspect of the film, I really can’t say.
Opens May 7, 2010
Directed by Thomas Balmes
Running Time: 1 hr. 19 min.
Rated
PG for cultural and maternal nudity
Bedlam Street
-Naomi Silver
Check out the trailer for Paul Wendell's amazing new film about a day in the life of several people. It's a dark tale of interconnected characters- a prostitute, a police officer and a Muslim family in the face of life altering events, running a local store on a cold day in December. "Bedlam Street" examines themes surrounding race, religion, violence, poverty and family. Shot entirely on location in St. Louis, Missouri. Coming this summer.
