The new documentary titled Babies shows the early lives of four babies living in different parts of the globe. They are Ponijao from Namibia, Mari from Tokyo, Hannah from San Francisco and Bayar from Mongolia. The filmmaker shows us their lives from birth until they are able to stand erect and walk. Because of the subject matter, the film has a high level oooh factor and the cuteness of the babies is overpowering.
The problem is that once you get past the cuteness of the babies and the adorableness of their actions there isn't anything else to see. There is no narrator to weave a story out of events involving these four infants nor is there any discernible dialogue to help you know them or their parents. This is just a visual vacation in Babyland.
The ability of filmmaker Thomas Balmes to capture special moments involving these babies is amazing. We see them interact with friends and siblings as well as pets and farm animals. In most instances these four are unfazed by anything in their span of vision. They have no fear and are for the most part amazingly serene. There are some scenes of frustration and irritability but these are rare.
Hannah and Mari appear to have more protected lives than Bayar and Ponijao. Their parents seem more involved in the hourly care of the children. Bayar and Ponijao seem to fend for themselves more but their mothers are always watchful even if from a distance.
The film is rated PG for maternal nudity.
For the first part of the movie the cuteness of the babies is enough but after that the sameness of the film starts to sink in and the need for something else arises. Four babies can only carry a movie so far and then it needs something additional. The additional something never arrives here.
If you love babies then you will get some enjoyment from this movie, but if watching even cute babies gets old after a time then you might want to be prepared to be bored. Watching this film is like watching home movies of babies who belong to people you don't even know, and who wants to do that?
I scored "Babies" an ooh and aah 5 out of 10.