Babies is a film of extreme cultural and geographic contrasts, which makes it a compelling watch. Set in dusty Namibia, the sweeping plains of Mongolia, densely populated Japan and suburban San Francisco…
"Babies" is one of those charming films that gets you thinking and is a joy to watch. We follow the lives of four wee babes from different parts of the world from before they were born until they are a year old. We watched it with our three children and they were fascinated by every scene.
It is a film of extreme cultural and geographic contrasts, which makes it a compelling watch. Set in dusty Namibia, the sweeping plains of Mongolia, densely populated Japan and suburban San Francisco, the babies are all nurtured in diverse ways, yet are cherished dearly by their parents.
It is so interesting to see what is valued in different cultures and therefore encouraged and taught to their littlies. The urban babies were surrounded by toys and books from the word go. The Namibian baby was encouraged to practice balancing a container on her head once she could walk!
The social settings of each family were an eye opener too. In Namibia the baby was cared for in a highly social way, with many caregivers and always with others. In the other cultures, the babies (and Mums) were more isolated and in the case of the urban babies they had classes like baby yoga and music groups to be ‘socialised’. In Mongolia, the farmed animals were often the baby’s company and he was remarkably at ease around cows, roosters and the like!
It is an intimate portrayal of the everyday ebb and flow of a baby’s life: feeding, toileting, bathing and learning to speak. Yet amidst all the differences, the universal truths of what it is to be a baby and have a baby remain the same. The babies coo and gurgle, play, crawl and walk just like each other. The parents patiently provide the often mundane care required to keep a baby safe and healthy, whilst relishing those many sweet moments of joy: a dreamy baby smile, smoochy kisses or singing rhymes cuddled up together.
It is those relationships that are the true star of this film. Watching the babies interact with their mums and dads, brothers and cats is delightful.
(And a little disturbing at times when it comes to the toddler in Mongolia who is quite the rat bag!)
It will make you think about what is considered ‘normal’ or ‘beat practice’ when it comes to parenting. It definitely made me think about all the STUFF we have to care for our babies here in NZ. Just cast your eyes over to your nappy bag if you are a parent! I came to the conclusion that a mix of all the different cultures would be fantastic. I like the idea of spending my days alongside other Mums caring for their babies. We could hang out together, share good food and watch over our darlings. But then I would want to escape to my own comfy home and have some peace and quiet and a wee look on Facebook.
It is beautifully shot and set to quirky music which is triumphant at times, as the babies reach certain milestones.
It will be a great movie to see for Mother’s Day and will particularly entertain parents. However if you just love babies then you will really enjoy it too. My nine year old gave it a 5/5 rating but would like to point out that it "Gross in some parts". (i.e. has some maternal nudity!) You will laugh and ooh and ahh. Go see it, baby.
By Linda Bowman, 15 April 2011.
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