Babies

Babies

2010

dir. Thomas Balmes st. Babies!

A look at one year in the life of four babies from around the world, from Mongolia to Namibia to San Francisco to Tokyo.

How can anyone resist a film about the first year of four babies?

Balmes had the right idea of showing different cultures around the world, had he shown four babies from the same neighborhood or even the same country, we'd be a little bored.

There is no narrative. But no narrative is needed, because even though the babies are from different parts of the world, they all speak the same language that can be understood by anyone from any culture. And they all want the same thing: Love. and food.

I found it really interesting how the mothers in Mongolia and Namibia often left the older children in charge of the little ones, and the Japanese and American parents took their kids to 'baby play-dates' and 'Mothers and Babies dance together!' class and those events seemed to be more of an excuse for the mothers to get out of the house than for the babies to... socialize...

All in all, this film has a very sweet message of: Babies are the same, and all are really cute! (Seinfeld lovers, I don't want to hear a word out of you.) But the message ends there, it's shallow in that sense. But it's about Babies!