Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, August 5, 1995 TAG: 9508090008
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It uses animals, humans, models and animated effects to tell a story of courage and tolerance. Even though most of the characters are four-legged, the film avoids the saccharine cuteness that makes so much of children's entertainment unwatchable for adults.
The title character (voiced by Christine Cavanaugh) is a pig who finds herself in a poke en route to Mr. Hoggett's (James Cromwell) farm. Though Babe doesn't know it, Mrs. Hoggett (Magda Szubanski) is planning on pork for Christmas dinner.
But Babe is a resourceful young swine who's determined to find her own way in the world. She receives useful advice from Fly (voice of Miriam Margolyes), the sheepdog who adopts Babe, and bad advice from Fredinand (voice of Danny Mann), the duck who aspires to be a rooster. His dreams lead to disaster and the stern warning that every animal has a place in the barnyard. Babe doesn't buy that and decides to be a sheepdog, ... er, sheep-pig.
Producer George Miller and director Chris Noonan wrote the script from Dick King-Smith's book, and somehow managed to capture an elusive fairy-tale quality. They actually structure the film as a book, with chapter titles that are read by a mouse chorus.
If the audience at one Friday matinee was representative, the film is a little too complicated and out of the ordinary for the youngest members of the audience. But most of the kids in the crowd loved "Babe," and so did the adults. Highly recommended.
Babe ****
A Universal release playing at the Grandin. 89 min. Rated G.
by CNB