Babe: Pig in the City (1998)

Babe, fresh from his victory in the sheepherding contest, returns to Farmer Hoggett's farm, but after Farmer Hoggett is injured and unable to work, Babe has to go to the big city to save the farm.

Director:

George Miller

Writers:

George Miller, Judy Morris,

Stars:

Magda Szubanski, James Cromwell, Mickey Rooney

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Magda Szubanski	...	Mrs. Esme Cordelia Hoggett
James Cromwell	...	Farmer Arthur Hoggett
Mary Stein	...	The Landlady
Mickey Rooney	...	Fugly Floom
Elizabeth Daily	...	Babe (voice) (as E.G. Daily)
Danny Mann	...	Ferdinand / Tug (voice)
Glenne Headly	...	Zootie (voice)
Steven Wright	...	Bob (voice)
James Cosmo	...	Thelonius (voice)
Nathan Kress	...	Easy / Tough Pup (voice)
Myles Jeffrey	...	Easy (voice)
Stanley Ralph Ross	...	The Bull Terrier / The Doberman (voice)
Russi Taylor	...	The Pink Poodle / Choir Cat (voice)
Adam Goldberg	...	Flealick (voice)
Eddie Barth	...	Nigel / Alan (voice)

Storyline

After Babe's great victory in the shepherding contest, Farmer Arthur Hoggett turns down all offers to make money with his pig's talents. But when he gets hurt severely in the well, his wife has to take up farming. She does her best but cannot meet the bank's requirements, which results in the necessity of getting back to Babe. Soon, Esme Hoggett is sitting in a plane headed for "the" city. There, Babe unwillingly causes deep trouble. He has to stay with Mrs. Hoggett in the only hotel in town that accepts pets. Friendly neighbours send officials who catch all animals from the hotel: Cats, dogs, chimpanzees and many others. Babe, who managed to stay free, decides to help his new friends and gets unexpected help - not only by Ferdinand, who flew all the way to the city.

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Plot Keywords:

farmer | hotel | farm | big city | animal | 

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Taglines:

In the heart of the city, a pig with heart.

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 November 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Babe 2

Filming Locations:

Fox Studios, Moore Park, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Box Office

Budget:

$80,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£612,971 (UK) (4 December 1998)

Gross:

ESP 170,326,452 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kennedy Miller Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Babe: Pig in the City commenced production at Fox Studios Australia in May 1997 and completed in August 1998. To say this film was produced at Fox is technically incorrect. When production commenced, ownership of the site had only just been transferred from the NSW Royal Agricultural Society to Fox a mere 1 month beforehand. The site was a complete shambles. Not only did the producers of "Babe, Pig in the City" have to make a film, they had to create a place in which to make it. An ex. Agricultural showground certainly threw up plenty of suitable facilities for which to make a film where animals were the star performers - but the sheer amount of work needed to bring "Babe, Pig in the City" to the screen is not readily apparent when watching the film. As production commenced, construction of the new studios also got underway. "Babe, Pig in the City" occupied the "old and decrepit" sections of the showground. Towards the latter stages of production, the "new side" construction fences encroached ever closer on the spaces being used and a "Cat and mouse" game ensued. Relocation of entire departments was common. More than half of the production was shot at night. "Babe, Pig in the City" still holds the record for the largest and most complex outdoor film back lot ever constructed in Australia. This back lot was constructed atop what was previously a large paved area for "sideshow alley" at the Royal Easter Show and remained in place on display at Fox until 2002. Likewise many locations around Sydney were also used including quite a few buildings within the old show grounds before they were demolished or refurbished into their new Fox roles.

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Goofs

The character Pit Bull is really a Bull Terrier.

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Quotes

Babe: You're very kind, but...
The Pitbull: No, no, I'm anything but kind. In fact, I have a professional obligation to be malicious.
Babe: Then you should change jobs.

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Crazy Credits

One of the singing mice thanks the audience for staying through the credits.

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Connections

Referenced in The Nostalgia Critic: Gordy (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Condition Red"
Written by Ben Suthers and Pee Wee Ferris
Performed by Pee Wee Ferris

User Reviews

A Classic

This film will one day be recognized as a classic. It is cinematic magic from beginning to end. Who cares what it is about and whether it is dark (and what film doesn't have a dark element, there is a nasty trend where we are supposed to keep the darker impulses from the wee ones, as if ignorance is wisdom), it is wonderful to look at, the acting is amazing, the animals are perfectly on cue, the action sequences are brilliant. It is a lovely and colorful dream, that yes might be a bit fantastical. So what? Imagine what a difference a movie set must be when it is predominantly animals in the movie.