Babe

Chris Noonan, Australia 1995, 90 minutes

`A little pig can go a long way'. True indeed if you happen to be a little large white by the name of Babe. Based on the story `The Sheep Pig' by Dick King-Smith, George Miller (yes, the guy who made Mad Max!) and Chris Noonan have created a delightful, enjoyable and satisfying film for all ages. At this year's Oscar ceremony it deserved to walk off with some big awards - unfortunately none of the bigwigs were man enough to vote for it. Not to be dismissed as just a film for children, this is a superbly crafted tale of a pig and his perilous journey through life. Split into several episodes, the film has many knowing references to Orwell's `Animal Farm', such as the hierarchy of animals, and plenty of darker moments for older viewers, and slips neatly between comedy and tragedy, but does not lose its younger audience's attention by being overly subjective.

The greatest feat that Babe pulls off is making you believe that animals can talk (but then any five year old could tell you that). Previous films such as Black Beauty or The Jungle Book have failed because the animals look ridiculous and have clearly been dubbed. However in this film each is entirely believable and the tone and mannerisms of each voice fit perfectly to the animals physical appearance. The blending of live and mechanical animals is almost seamless and we are treated to a sheepdog family and a neurotic duck, as well as a field of sheep who wouldn't look out of place at the local knitting circle.

Babe herself (for she is a she), is lovably cute with a tuft of fluff (actually a wig) on her head and a twisty tail from her bum. Over twenty piglets were used in the making of the film as they kept growing up too fast and the number of animals (almost all of which had to be trained from birth) on set numbered in the hundreds. Indeed, given the maxim `Never work with children or animals' (and the children here are particularly grotesque) it is amazing that the crew managed to survive this film.

Amongst the humans in the tale, the wise old farmer stands out, but this is really a film about animals and in particular, a special little pig who goes from being an orphan to the best known sheep-pig in Australia. In America this film apparently led to a huge drop in the sales of bacon, but even if you are a confirmed carnivore come and see this film - it might just change your mind.

"Marvellous comic fable *****" - Empire

Review by Neil Chue Hong
Taken from EUFS Programme 1996-97