Jay Rohr
Babes is the kind of movie I would love to force Ben Shapiro to watch. There are moments I’m sure would cause blood to shoot out of his eyes. Unfortunately, I kept imagining his foaming discomfort because that was more entertaining than watching the movie itself. Babes is a frustratingly dull waste of talent that seems to think its empowering message is enough to distract from its shortcomings.
The film focuses on Eden played by Illana Glazer (“Broad City”). She’s an energetic, carefree single lady living in New York City. After her bestie, Dawn (Michelle Buteau), gives birth to another child, Eden has a one-night stand with a stranger played by Stephan James (If Beale Street Could Talk). This results in a pregnancy that strains the relationship between the close friends. Mainly, that’s because the two are forced to realize their trajectories may no longer be entwined.
Watching Babes often feels like binge watching a TV show where pregnancy is the current season’s theme. It’s a series of sketches which orbit various notions without really exploring any of them. Touching on topics the way it does gives the film the thematic grace of a drive-by shotgun blast. Basically, it covers a broad spectrum with several tiny points, but individually, they don’t amount to much alone.
That’s because there’s no real through-line connecting any of what happens. Babes is so busy trying to draw attention to numerous notions that it doesn’t develop them into anything interesting. The film wants to be about best friends and how relationships change over time while also being about pregnancy, postpartum depression, motherhood, careers, and being a single parent. All the movie really does is offer the briefest glimpses into these situations. At best, its artistic observation is that these things exist.
When Babes does attempt to give anything depth, the movie starts to sound like a PSA trying too hard to be cool. Perhaps writers Illana Glazer and Josh Rabinowitz realized as much. That’d explain why the closing half of the film relies heavily on monologues and conversations where characters simply state their emotions, intentions, and desires. Instead of even attempting clever interactions or comedic insights, the movie slogs to a close through a series of declarative statements.
Another big problem with Babes is that it’s so focused on being positive about pregnancy that it minimizes any of the downsides. Everything is portrayed in the most ideal scenario possible, while pointing out that, even in the best of circumstances, having a baby is incredibly difficult. The result is a lack of dramatic stakes and wasted comedic opportunities. It’s like Babes wants to mention pregnancies have difficulties and grossness, but the film is afraid of anything too negative or nauseating.
Granted, characters will discuss certain situations. The issue then is that a lot of the comedic dialogue is built around the presumption that either audiences are unaware of the grosser details of having a baby (i.e. hemorrhoids, breaking water, expelling the placenta), or are already familiar enough they don’t need details to complete the picture. This results in weak punchlines that are typically just saying medical details or bizarre gibberish like, “Hormones!? LOL Mitch McConnell!”
Personally, I found maybe fifteen percent of the jokes in here worth a chuckle at best. Though that said, I feel it would be dishonest to leave out that the audience at the screener I attended were laughing like hillbillies on nitrous. As such, I can only conclude Babes is funny for certain people. I, personally, found most of the jokes were trying too hard, didn’t really make sense, or simply weren’t amusing. But there’s clearly a bracket of people who will find this movie hilarious.
Assuming the comedy is your cup of tea, Glazer is energetic in her portrayal, though it’s mainly a variant of the character she played on the television show “Broad City.” Granted, she can be entertaining, but it keeps reminding that the movie feels like binge watching a web series composed of lazy pregnancy jokes. Michelle Buteau (“First Wives Club”) is wonderful in her portrayal of Dawn. The two performers clearly have chemistry. However, it tends to highlight how little their relationship is explored, which is a shame since it’s supposedly the dramatic core of the story.
A lot gets lost trying to tell both tales of motherhood simultaneously. Dawn is the experienced, albeit exhausted, mother of two, while Eden is the excited first timer. Occasionally, this gels into clever comedy like when a babysitting misstep highlights Eden’s potential parental shortcomings, but too often the separate narratives aren’t really connected. That is until the script needs to force a dramatic moment. Consequently, very little seems to happen organically throughout the film.
Directed by Pamela Adlon, Babes never looks bad. Having her at the helm is great. Adlon has directed 44 episodes of her award-winning series “Better Things” not to mention had a long, successful career as a performer. The feminist vibe and vibrance of that series, where the comedy comes from the absurdity of reality — hints of it can be seen in Babes. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough to over-shine the flaws.
Babes is often at its best when it’s not trying to be a comedy. One of the most charming parts is the meet cute portion where Stephan James as Claude and Eden first meet. Cinematically, it’s a wonderfully constructed moment combined with excellent interactions between the two performers. Furthermore, moments of drama like this often spark laughs through honesty and the incidental absurdity of real life. There just aren’t enough.
Babes is a movie that wants to be honest but not say anything too negative. The unpleasant aspects of pregnancy it tries to sugarcoat with comedy result in buffoonish displays. Certain people will find all this amusing. Some will not. I don’t want to cop out by saying comedy is subjective, but there it is. For some, this is an empowering, humorous look at pregnancy, while others will see a missed comedic opportunity.
