The script is by co-star Ilana Glazer and Josh Rabinowitz, also of Broad City<\/em>, and that scans; it feels like the next logical step after that show, checking in with characters who are a little older but not quite wiser, a bit more responsible but still capable (and, indeed, often in dire need) of cutting loose. The main shift between those characters and these is the introduction of motherhood \u2014 when we first meet lifelong besties Eden (Glazer) and Dawn (Michelle Buteau), Dawn is going into labor with her second child, initially quite casually, though it escalates more rapidly than either of them expect. (\u201cYou\u2019ve never seen a bad bitch crawl?\u201d Ilana thunders at passerby, as her friend enters the hospital on all fours.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n On her way home \u2014 four trains, on a holiday, to get her from Dawn\u2019s fancy new digs on the UWS to her fourth-floor walk-up in Astoria \u2014 Eden finds herself in the midst of a delightful Gotham romance, a courtship that spans that long ride with another Astorian (Stephan James). They vibe, and laugh, and sleep together, and make such a strong connection that Eden is surprised when he doesn\u2019t reply to her texts. Turns out he\u2019s not ghosting her; he died, which is a bummer since she really liked him, and even more depressing when she discovers she\u2019s pregnant. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The story beats that follow don\u2019t veer too far from the expected playbook; Eden decides to have the baby, asking Dawn for all sorts of support that she can barely give to herself and her own family. (There is a full subplot about Dawn\u2019s trouble producing breast milk that\u2019s exactly the kind of authentic, lived-in detail that most movies don\u2019t bother to include.) The dynamics shift \u2014 nothing good can come of a conversation that includes the question, \u201cCan I be honest with you?\u201d \u2014 and the picture turns serious, though it does so a bit more evenly and gracefully than something like No Hard Feelings<\/a><\/em> or Joy Ride<\/a>. <\/em>The pathos of the home stretch feels genuine and earned, even when the writing is a touch too on the nose.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Babes <\/em>isn\u2019t reinventing the wheel, and it won\u2019t linger in your memory long after the credits roll. But there\u2019s a lot to like about it: a straight-up movie-star turn for Glazer (she holds the big screen as capably as the small), equal footing for the deeply empathetic Buteau, ace supporting turns by character-actor champs Platt and John Carroll Lynch, and deep steeping in the specificity of Astoria, a neighborhood not quite like any other in the city. But most importantly, it\u2019s a film with quite a lot of very big laughs, rooted in both character and candor, and that\u2019s worth celebrating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Babes” is in theaters this weekend.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/babes2-1024x641.jpg\")
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