Cinema Review: “Babies”

This documentary chronicling human life from birth to walking for four children is an independent darling lately, and it merits that immediate classicality! A simple film with no twists and largely predictable, the strength of it is not drama, but its sense of wonderment. Primal nature is depicted with elegance and dignity. You might have a momentary social cringe when you see graphic scenes of defecation and urination, but somehow, knowing the film is an art documentary about “Babies” helps you walk into those scenes with sincere amazement for life at its most basic. Even at its most basic, life is immediately complex and a vast buffet of experiences for these children, and for us by proxy.

A rare achievement, it is an effective documentary without any commentary to contextualize the lives of these children. It has a voyeuristic approach which we rely on our understanding of human cues to discern various emotional arcs: sibling rivalry evolving into camaraderie, effort towards independence, triumphant moments, disappointment… the only thing guiding the viewer is the action of the babies, and the reaction of others in their environment.

Speaking of others, the babies are often in proximity to animal life, which was an interesting juxtaposition. You see how immediately children are different mentally, they are contemplative and they express their mental process through facial expressions. The film seems to subtly argue for an innate human experience and reinforces all of our membership into this species.

The film is also a provocative experiment in how we assemble narratives across cultural lines. Based on the editing, the basic premise of the story seems to be clear, and once again, without any comment on the part of the film.

We assemble the stories for the children, we understand their journey, they do not mystefy us by their oddity. Rather, they intrigue us because of their remarkable familiarity, the universality of joy and pain. The search for clues and cues is the way we, as adults, cope with language barriers, and this film is an illustration of that transcendence.

We identify with the children, we recognize how right out the gate, they have distinct personalities. We can project into it our own suspicions as to the types of people they will be when they have grown into adults. Children, the film seems to say, ARE fully-realized, complete beings. They just need to learn how to articulate their well of emotions to the world. But the well is already present from birth, originating from a very deep place in the psyche and the heart.

Mari, from Japan, demonstrated an awareness of how to manipulate her environment and seemed to have an engineering mind. Ponijao, from Africa, cut off from many of the modern amenities and distractions, had the strongest sense of self and center. Hattie, from San Francisco, is sensitive to the emotions of others, and reads into people's actions. Bayar, from Mongolia, had emotional resilience and bounced back with joy in response to many tough realities. What kind of baby were you?

Focus Features Official Site (English Distributor) [] Studio Canal Site (Fr)

I saw this film at Landmark Theatres La Jolla Village Cinemas.