| Babe | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Chris Noonan |
| Produced by | Catherine Barber Philip Hearnshaw Bill Miller George Miller Doug Mitchell Daphne Paris |
| Screenplay by | George Miller Chris Noonan Book Dick King-Smith |
| Narrated by | Roscoe Lee Browne |
| Starring | James Cromwell Roscoe Lee Browne Christine Cavanaugh Miriam Margolyes Hugo Weaving Miriam Flynn Danny Mann Magda Szubanski Russi Taylor |
| Music by | Nigel Westlake |
| Cinematography | Andrew Lesnie |
| Editing by | Marcus D'Arcy Jay Friedkin |
| Distributed by | Universal Studios |
| Release date(s) | August 4, 1995 (United States) December 14, 1995 (Australia) |
| Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | Australia United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $30 million[1] |
| Box office | $254,134,910 |
Babe is a 1995 Australian-American film directed by Chris Noonan. It is an adaptation of the 1983 novel The Sheep-Pig, also known as Babe: The Gallant Pig in the United States, by Dick King-Smith and tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog. The main animal characters are played by a combination of real and animatronic pigs and Border Collies.[2]
Babe was filmed in Robertson, New South Wales, Australia.[3] The talking-animal visual effects were done by Rhythm & Hues Studios and Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Although the setting and style of the film are distinctly British/Australasian pastoral, many of the human speaking parts were overdubbed from Australian to American accents for popular acceptance in the American film market.
The film was a critical and box office success and was nominated for seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, but lost to Braveheart. The success of the film launched a sequel, Babe: Pig in the City, which was released in 1998 to mixed reviews.
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After a piglet's mother is taken away by humans to be slaughtered, the piglet, whose name is Babe, is picked out for a "guess the weight" booth at a county fair. Farmer Arthur Hoggett guesses his weight (i.e. 16 lbs., 2 oz.) and wins the pig. Babe is brought to his farm and allowed to stay with the female sheepdog, Fly (a Border Collie), and her pups. Maa, an elderly resident sheep, tells him to watch out for the dogs. A duck named Ferdinand, posing as a rooster in order to keep from being eaten, wakes the farm each morning by crowing. He persuades Babe to help him destroy the alarm clock because it threatens his mission. They succeed, but wake the Hoggett's cat, Duchess, and accidentally destroy the living room, causing the three covered in paint. Rex, Fly's mate and leader of the farm animals, orders Babe to stay away from Ferdinand (who is now a fugitive) and the house.
Christmas time brings a visit from the Hoggetts' relatives. Babe is almost chosen for the Christmas dinner but a duck is picked instead after Farmer Hoggett convinces his wife that they shouldn't kill the pig. The day after Christmas, Babe alerts the farmer to some sheep rustlers who are taking sheep from the top field.
The next day Hoggett sees Babe sort the hens, separating the brown ones from the white ones. Impressed, he takes the pig to the sheep fields along with Fly and Rex. Rex feels threatened by Babe when Hoggett tells Babe, rather than Rex to herd the sheep, and is furious with Fly for helping him. Fly advises Babe to be rough, so he bites one of the sheep, angering Maa, who advises him to ask politely. The sheep cooperate, and Babe herds them out of their pen, impressing Farmer Hoggett and amazing the other dogs. Rex, however, regards Babe's behavior as an insult to sheepdogs, and that night, he attacks his mate for "putting ideas" in Babe's head. Fly's right front leg is injured, and Hoggett is bitten by Rex in an attempt to break up the fight. Rex is chained to the dog house and sedated. It is now Babe's job to herd the sheep.
Hoggett considers entering Babe in the sheepdog trials. One morning, Babe runs out to the field and witnesses a pack of wolves attacking the sheep. He scares them away, but Maa has been mortally injured and dies from her wounds, causing everyone to cry "Maa!" repeatedly. Hoggett eventually arrives to see Babe standing over Maa with blood on his snout and assumes the worst. As he prepares to shoot Babe, Fly tries talking to the sheep for the first time to find out what happened. She distracts Hoggett by barking long enough for Mrs. Hoggett to come out and tell how she heard from the police that wolves killed lambs on another farm.
When Mrs. Hoggett goes on a trip via bus, Hoggett enters Babe in the sheepdog trials under the name "Pig." That evening, it is so wet outside that Hoggett lets Babe inside the house along with Fly. Duchess, however, scratches Babe in an attempt to talk to her, and she is thrown out onto the porch as a time out. Ferdinand returns from his self-imposed exile. Duchess is allowed back into the house and, while apologizing for scratching Babe at first, tells Babe that humans eat pigs. Fly confirms this, which devastates Babe. The next morning Fly discovers Babe has run away. He is found by Hoggett barely alive. Babe refuses to eat, despite encouragement from Rex, who has softened his attitude. Hoggett gives him a drink in a baby bottle and sings "If I Had Words" to Babe, and eventually dances for him. This restores Babe's faith in the farmer, and he begins eating.
At the trials the sheep refuse to listen to Babe, and Rex runs to the farm to find out what to do. The sheep give Rex a secret password only for Babe's use, and make Rex promise to treat the sheep better. The crowd laughs as Babe tries herding the sheep, but using the password, Babe convinces the sheep to do what he asks, and they perform flawlessly. After getting perfect scores and the cheers and adoration of the crowd, Rex and Fly lick each other in victory, while Babe sits next to Hoggett, who says, "That'll do, Pig. That'll do."
Babe was a critical success and was very well received. It currently holds a 98% "Certified Fresh" approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 100% approval rating from top critics, making it one of the best rated films on their website.[4] It was also a box office success, grossing $254,134,910 worldwide.[5]
It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.[6] It won the award for Best Visual Effects, defeating Apollo 13.[7] In 2006, the American Film Institute named Babe #80 on its list of America's Most Inspiring Movies.
Due to its title and subject matter not being halal, Babe was initially banned in Malaysia, although the ruling was overturned almost a year later and the film was released direct-to-VHS.[8]
Babe grossed $36,776,544 at the box office in Australia,[18] which is equivalent to $52,958,223 in 2009 dollars.
A 1998 sequel Babe: Pig in the City was released in theaters, but received mixed reviews from film critics.
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