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:

Pig | Farmer | Sheep | Sheepdog | Dog

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 17 wins & 17 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Thur. July 9	4:30 PM	HBO
Tue. July 14	9:30 AM	HBO
Sat. July 18	12:00 PM	HBO

Cast

Christine Cavanaugh	...	Babe the Gallant Pig (voice)
Miriam Margolyes	...	Fly the Female Sheepdog (voice)
Danny Mann	...	Ferdinand the Duck (voice)
Hugo Weaving	...	Rex the Male Sheepdog (voice)
Miriam Flynn	...	Maa the Very Old Ewe (voice)
Russi Taylor	...	Dutchess the Cat (voice) (as Russie Taylor)
Evelyn Krape	...	Old Ewe (voice)
Michael Edward-Stevens	...	Horse (voice)
Charles Bartlett	...	Cow (voice)
Paul Livingston	...	Rooster in Stall (voice)
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	Narrator (voice)
James Cromwell	...	Farmer Arthur Hoggett
Magda Szubanski	...	Mrs. 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:

Country, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Kennedy Miller Productions

Trivia:

The film had 56 animal trainers on set to handle nearly 1000 animals.

Goofs:

Continuity: The fax machine Hoggett receives as a gift is different from the one he uses to send his application for the show.

Quotes:

[Babe's first attempt to herd sheep just got him laughed at]
Babe: This is ridiculous, Mom!
Fly: Nonsense, it's only your first try. But you're treating them like equals. They're sheep, they're inferior.
Babe: Oh, no they're not.
Fly: Of course they are. We are their masters, Babe. Let them doubt it for a second and they'll walk all over you.
Rex the Male Sheepdog: Fly! Get the pig out of there!
Fly: Make them feel inferior--abuse them, insult them.
Rex the Male Sheepdog: Fly!
Babe: They'll laugh at me.
Fly: Then bite them! Be ruthless. Whatever it takes, bend them to your will.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: The Best of David Spade (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Blue Moon

Positively Sublime

An extremely quirky film that you won't mind watching with the kids. Not full of sappy platitudes, this strange little tale of a pig that wants to be a sheep dog is extremely effective in it's message without hitting you in the head with it. No doubt because it wasn't made in Hollywood... we Americans have never been good at telling children's stories without being condescending and heavy-handed with the moral message.

The story takes place in some fairy tale amalgam of all the rural cultures of the English-speaking world - Sometimes it seems like England, other times Kansas, Australia, New Zealand, it's really never anywhere particular. The acting is superb, the animatronics are unrecognizable as such, and James Cromwell is superb as the taciturn farmer willing to give the little pig a chance.