Babe (1995)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Chris Noonan

Writers:

Dick King-Smith (novel)
George Miller (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

4 August 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

A little pig goes a long way.

Plot:

Babe, a pig raised by sheepdogs, learns to herd sheep with a little help from Farmer Hoggett.

Plot Keywords:

Farmer | Pig | Sheep | Dog | Sheepdog

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 17 wins & 17 nominations

Cast

Christine Cavanaugh	...	Babe (voice)
Miriam Margolyes	...	Fly (voice)
Danny Mann	...	Ferdinand (voice)
Hugo Weaving	...	Rex (voice)
Miriam Flynn	...	Maa (voice)
Russi Taylor	...	Duchess the Cat (voice) (as Russie Taylor)
Evelyn Krape	...	Old Ewe (voice)
Michael Edward-Stevens	...	Horse (voice)
Charles Bartlett	...	Cow (voice)
Paul Livingston	...	Rooster (voice)
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	Narrator (voice)
James Cromwell	...	Farmer Arthur Hoggett
Magda Szubanski	...	Esme Hoggett
Zoe Burton	...	Daughter
Paul Goddard	...	Son-in-Law

Also Known As:

Babe, the Gallant Pig

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

Australia | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS

Certification:

Canada:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Belgium:KT | Chile:TE | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:o.Al. (bw) | Hong Kong:I | Iceland:L | Malaysia:(Banned) | Netherlands:AL | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/6 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:All | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:U | USA:G (certificate #33880) | Brazil:Livre

Filming Locations:

Illawarra Highway, Albion Park, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Kennedy Miller Productions

Trivia:

Most films released in German-speaking areas in Europe are dubbed in Germany with the same standard German pronunciation. This film, however, was also released in a special version that was re-dubbed for Austria. Each of the animals speaks in a very specific regional Austrian accent: Ferdinand the Duck sounds like a Tyrolean, Duchess the cat has a Vorarlberg accent and so on. The mice sing Styrian folk songs. The movie was quite popular with adults as well as children, since the accents and all the regional figures of speech used were quite hilarious.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The competition clock at the sheep dog trials has no minute hand.

Quotes:

Fly: [solemnly] Rex? I know it was hard for you today, watching all that happening. But surely it's not worth all this misery. Please, dear, not on such a beautiful night.
Rex the Male Sheepdog: [furiously] You put these ideas into his head, two-faced traitorous *wretch*!
[Rex attacks Fly]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Grey's Anatomy: Life During Wartime (#5.5)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Spring Dance

Simple, likable feel-gooder

A simple, likable feel-gooder. In lesser hands, 'Babe' might easily have risked excruciating death by treacle, or by camp. It does have a couple weak spots (those non-sequitur mouse songs, for instance, do nothing for me, and I always wonder why they used fake American accents for the idiomatically British dialogue). But for the most part the inventive direction and sense of genuine whimsy (not unlike those of 'Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain') steer it away from the most dangerous pitfalls. The blend of CGI, puppetry, and real animals is subtle and wonderfully believable, with the 'performances' of Fly and Rex standing out in their eloquence and realism. Much has been made, of course, of James Cromwell's acting here, and he certainly is an authentic, very charming presence throughout. But Magda Szubanski's work shouldn't be overshadowed either--even her walk is rich in comic detail. In the end, there's not a whole lot to this film, but the good things outweigh the bad, the dark edges keep it all from getting too sappy, and some of the more expressive moments truly achieve a kind of magic. 8 out of 10.