A review in
The National Post has given the film “Babies” 2.5 stars, calling it “these are
babies from a baby”s-eye point of view”.

The film uses no subtitles for its
three non-English-speaking families, but what would such a flourish add?
Parental strictures sound pretty much the same in any language, and most of the
things people say to babies are neither important nor interesting.

There”s also no narration, probably
because it would instantly catapult the film into the realm of farce. Better to
let the kids crawl in silence.

Balmès also avoids dwelling on matters
of religion, disease or malnutrition, which may lead some to wonder just what
fills up the film”s admittedly brief 80-minute runtime. Ultimately, what the
film shows us is that the cultural differences among the very young are more
than outweighed by the sameness of their early explorations and interactions. Mongolia“s baby
Bayarjargal lives in a yurt, outside of which stands an old-fashioned satellite
dish, bigger than a hot tub. Mari (Tokyo) and
Hattie (San Francisco)
have much more high-tech surroundings.

But all the kids experiment with food
(including trying to eat things they shouldn”t) and play with whatever objects
are close at hand – including, for some reason, a multitude of cats. Grooming
may involve being held in the shower, having the head shaved, application of an
ochre paste or a once-over with one of those sticky lint removers, but the
parental care is evident regardless of the method.

Babies is, in many ways, like a baby. It”s
cute and pretty useless, but with great potential. In that sense, it”s perfect
for anyone who”s ever had a baby, been a baby or is still a baby, teaching us
nothing new about the human condition, but reminding us of its timeless power
to make us go “awww!”