Babe Review

Director: Chris Noonan (Miss Potter)
Screenplay: Chris Noonan and George Miller (Mad Max, Happy Feet)
Starring: James Cromwell (L.A. Confidential, The Green Mile), Christine Cavanuagh (Rugrats), and Magda Szubanski
Gross Revenue: $254,134,910
Rotten Tomatoes TomatoMeter: 98%
IMDB Rating: 7.2
Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.  Nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, Best Film Editing, and Best Art Direction

     Most of you probably haven’t heard of this little Australian film known as Babe, of if you have, you probably don’t remember watching it.  It warranted quite a reaction when it was released in America, and was even nominated for an award for Best Picture.  This is quite remarkable for a film about a talking pig.  But that’s the beauty of the Babe.  Though it’s a movie largely about the antics of animals, it is actually an emotionally complex and sometimes dark film with enough heart and soul to win over any skeptical film goer.

     Babe is about the antics of a wee pig named Babe, who is won by a farmer at a local fair.  Being quite young and separated from his mother and family, he is scared in this new environment of the farm, and is overwhelmed by the rules society has set down for farm animals.  A sheepdog named Fly takes him in under her wing, and teaches him the rules of the farm.  As Babe meets the assortment of colorful and quirky farm animals, he begins to dream for a life beyond that of a pig, with an ultimate destination of becoming “Christmas dinner”.  He finds his calling in becoming a sheepdog, and turns his, and the farm’s, world upside down.

     Part of the reason the film works so effectively is due to the spectacular visual effects.  The animal characters are portrayed through a combination of real animals and animatronic animals provided by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop.  The transition is seamless, and it really looks like these authentic, flesh and blood animals are talking to each other.  The visual effects won the Oscar, and it’s impossible not to see why, for Babe is one of those rare instances when the effects truly served the story, instead of just being a flash display of computer generated imagery.  James Cromwell also shines in a very low-key performance as Farmer Hogget and gives real-world reference for Babe’s emotional journey.
      For  a film about talking animals, Babe is surprisingly complex and adult.  Babe, just like many of us, is a dreamer.  He is not satisfied with the place society has “destined” for him to be, and longs for a grander purpose, an innately human characteristic.  Babe goes through the same struggles that many humans face; abandonment, loss of innocence, manipulation, growing up, and the discovery of a purpose.  The character of Babe brings a new innocence and hope to the farm, and teaches the animals a lesson in tolerance and destiny.  Who can’t relate to that?
     Babe is everything you want in a family film.  It’s funny, dramatic, features a whole assortment of great characters, a relatable and inspirational story, and groundbreaking visual effects.  It’s light-hearted and fun enough to be enjoyed by children, but mature and dark enough to be enjoyed by adults as well.  If only movies populated by humans were half as good.  Babe is the best movie about talking pigs ever made, due to its relatable and inspirational story, mature themes, and a large amount of fun that make it a must see for the whole family.  4/5.
"That'll do pig.  That'll do"