Animal Farm (1999)

The animals of a farm successfully revolt against its human owner, only to slide into a more brutal tyranny amongst themselves.

Director:

John Stephenson

Writers:

George Orwell (novel), Alan Janes (teleplay)

Stars:

Kelsey Grammer, Ian Holm, Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kelsey Grammer	...	Snowball (voice)
Ian Holm	...	Squealer (voice)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus	...	Mollie (voice)
Julia Ormond	...	Jessie (voice)
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Benjamin (voice) / Farmer Jones
Paul Scofield	...	Boxer (voice)
Patrick Stewart	...	Napoleon (voice)
Peter Ustinov	...	Old Major (voice)
Alan Stanford	...	Farmer Pilkington
Caroline Gray	...	Mrs. Jones
Gail Fitzpatrick	...	Mrs. Pilkington
Jimmy Keogh	...	Dennis
Noel O'Donovan	...	Eric
Gerard Walsh	...	Farmer Fredericks
Jer O'Leary	...	Farmer

Storyline

A satire of Stalinist Russia, this story tells of the revolt of the animals of Manor Farm against their human masters. Led by the pigs Snowball (Trotsky) and Napoleon (Stalin), the animals attempt to create a utopian society. Soon, however, Napoleon gets a taste for power, drives out Snowball, and establishes a totalitarian regime as brutal and corrupt as any human society. Manor Farm becomes a world where all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

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Plot Keywords:

farm | pig | communism | speech | satire | 

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Taglines:

There's a new day dawning on the farm.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a revised first draft of the script, co-Writer Martyn Burke had Jessie set to be a six-month-old male Border Collie. This idea was later dropped, and Jessie was made an adult female instead, to give the audiences more sympathy for the main character.

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Goofs

Flipped Image: At the end of the film's introduction, just before the title appears, the close-up of Jessie's face as she says, "But I could still remember," is flipped. The markings that are on the left side of her face are on the right, and the markings that are on the right side of her face are on the left.

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Quotes

Napoleon: I like whiskey.

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Connections

Referenced in AniMat's Crazy Cartoon Cast: Next Year Will Be Quacked Up (2020)

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Soundtracks

Beasts of the World
Written by Richard Harvey
Performed by Peter Ustinov, Kelsey Grammer, Patrick Stewart, Ian Holm & Cast

User Reviews

Orwell is spinning in his grave.

If I had looked at the back of the video box, and seen that it was from Hallmark, I would have put it back on the fence. Thankfully, I checked it out from the library, so I didn't pay to watch this.

The grievances of the animals were valid. Orwell never repudiates Old Major's message, as does this movie. In the book, no animal wants the humans back. The movie shows that all the animals need is the right master, and everything will be happy.

This ain't Animal Farm. Read the book instead.

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 October 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Animal Farm

Filming Locations:

Ireland

Box Office

Budget:

$23,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Animal Farm Productions Ltd., Hallmark Entertainment, TNT

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1