![Babies [Blu-ray]](http://cdn.hometheaterforum.com/e/eb/50x50px-ZC-eb9bb060_B002ZG974W-51lWjszZxWL.jpg)
BABIES
Studio: Universal
Year: 2010
Length: 1 hr 19 mins
Genre: Documentary/Children
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
BD Resolution: 1080p
BD Video Codec: VC-1 (@ an average 20 mbps)
Color/B&W: Color
Audio:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (@ an average 3.0 mbps)
Subtitles: English SDH
Film Rating: PG (Maternal and Cultural Nudity Throughout)
Release Date: September 28, 2010
Starring: Ponijao (Namibia), Bayarjargal (Mongolia), Mari (Tokyo), Hattie (San Francisco)
Directed by: Thomas Balmès
Film Rating: 3/5
Babies is one of those documentaries that redefines what you think a documentary really can be. Over the course of about 80 minutes, this film juxtaposes the first year of the lives of four babies born in completely different cultures and settings. Two babies are born in rural cultures (Namibia and Mongolia), and two babies are born in urban cultures (Tokyo and San Francisco). Each baby is reared in a completely separate world, with different languages, customs, etc. And yet, all the babies essentially go through the same process to arrive at their first steps by the end of the film. You might say, the more different we are, the more similar we are. People who are really interested in babies will have a great time with this piece. For me, the amusement goes off and on. Certain situations are laugh-out-loud funny, and others are moving for a variety of reasons. Some of director Thomas Balmès’ juxtapositions are truly inspired – a shot of little Mari encountering a tiger at the Tokyo zoo is followed by a shot of little Hattie and the house cat. There are a couple of shots with the Mongolian family that raised my eyebrows – one early scene of the whole family getting on a motorcycle together, with the mother struggling to get onboard while holding the baby, and a later one where Bayer’s older brother pushes the stroller out into the livestock area and leaves the baby out there… And the whole enterprise ends with a really interesting Sufjan Stevens song called “The Perpetual Self”.
Babies will be released on standard definition DVD and Blu-ray next week. The Blu-ray edition carries the same extras as the standard definition DVD, coupling them with a high definition picture and sound transfer, as well as the usual BD-Live and pocket BLU functionality.
VIDEO QUALITY 4/5
Babies is presented in a 1080p VC-1 1.85:1 transfer that accurately presents a fairly wide variety of flesh tones and environments. And if ever there was a movie and a picture transfer about flesh tones, this one is it. I should note that I am watching the film on a 40” Sony XBR2 HDTV. If anyone is watching the film on a larger monitor and is having issues, please post them on this thread.
AUDIO QUALITY 3 ½/5
Babies is presented in an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix. The mix is perfectly acceptable, but this really isn’t a movie about the sound mix. The musical score fills all the channels through much of the film. There is some dialogue heard around the babies at different points, but nothing of significance. There is no narration. The primary sounds heard here are either the sounds the babies make or the score. Everything past that is simply atmosphere. Even the notation that the mix is in English is a bit misleading – the only English to be heard is in the San Francisco scenes here and there. But I have to admit that the mix does help immerse the viewer in each of these different worlds – whether it be a hut in Namibia, a farm in Mongolia or a supermarket in Tokyo.
SPECIAL FEATURES 1/5
The Blu-Ray presentation of Babies comes with the usual BD-Live connectivity and My Scenes functionality, as well as pocket BLU. Beyond that, we are presented with two very brief extras, one revisiting the families three years later, and one showing the winning submissions by fans of the film.
The Babies – Three Years Later – (4:04, 1080p) This featurette follows up on a bit in the film’s end credits, where we see what the children look like as of their fourth birthday. (The credits show each baby, and then a “Mari Today” clip of the kids at the time the film was finished.) In this featurette, the director visits the families again and shows them the movie. If anything, the featurette makes clear how much the children are starting to resemble their parents as they grow into their faces.
Everybody Loves… Your Babies Sweepstakes Winners – (2:06, 480p, Anamorphic) This is a quick collection of various photos and videos submitted to the filmmakers of babies engaged in a plethora of activities. The highlight seems to be one boy’s tap dance routine...
BD-Live - The more general BD-Live screen is accessible via the menu, which makes various online materials available, including tickers, trailers and special events.
My Scenes - The usual bookmarking feature is included here.
pocket BLU– The latest Blu-ray features of phone apps and social networking are included here for viewers with the right iPhones, Blackberries and other current hardware.
The film is subtitled in English, where applicable. Most of the time, there isn’t anything to subtitle other than “cooing” or “calling”. The usual pop-up menu is present, along with a complete chapter menu. Further, when you first put the Blu-ray in the player, several trailers will load from BD-Live, which you can get past by hitting the “Next Chapter” button. Each time I loaded the disc, I got the general Universal Blu-ray trailer, a trailer about pocket BLU, and a trailer for The Office.
IN THE END...
Babies is a documentary that will appeal to people interested in baby behavior and in cross-cultural studies. It’s not the most memorable piece, but it does have some striking images and some amusing vignettes. I recommend a rental before purchasing unless you’ve already seen the film. The Blu-ray certainly has a solid high definition picture transfer, but I don’t know that this alone will be enough to justify a purchase over a rental.
Kevin Koster
September 22, 2010.
And that'll be quite a change in our home...since my youngest is 20 and in his third year of college...
