Babe: Pig in the City (1998)

July 30, 2022 1:26 PM

When Babe accidentally puts farmer Hoggett (James Cromwell) in traction, the debtors come looking for their payments. In order to pay their debt, Mrs. Hoggett (Magda Szubanski) sends Babe off across the ocean to the city to demonstrate his talents as a sheep herder. Along with his friends, Babe meets a lot of new friends and gets into new adventures.

Directed by George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road).

Rated 65% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Currently streaming with ads on FreeVee or available for digital rental on multiple outlets.

posted by DirtyOldTown (9 comments total)

Hot take: this is a more artful, interesting film than the first one. Truly odd, like Jeunet & Caro made a children's film.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:06 PM on July 30, 2022 [2 favorites]

Yeah, it's great. And delightfully dark.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 6:18 PM on July 30, 2022

Haven't seen this for many years, but I remember that incredible orangutan character. So sad, somehow.
posted by Zumbador at 10:31 PM on July 30, 2022 [2 favorites]

The 'Apocalypse Now' of kid movies.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 6:17 AM on July 31, 2022 [3 favorites]

Late period Mickey Rooney roles are largely a minefield of junk but here we see him in a delightfully deranged role. It was a reminder that Rooney could still do interesting work.

Its been awhile since I have seen it but I find this superior to its antecedent - weird, unsettling, unsentimental, dark. It might be my frigid Northern heart but I think this the bar that all children's films should aspire towards.
posted by Ashwagandha at 10:01 AM on July 31, 2022 [1 favorite]

Is this the one with mice intoning "The new dispensation " in high-pitched yet ominous tones?
posted by clew at 5:45 PM on July 31, 2022

This is a very interesting and multi-layered animal performance film. I recommend it to people all the time. The usual response is scornful disbelief.
posted by Morpeth at 4:44 AM on August 1, 2022 [4 favorites]

I like dark and disturbing films, but this one just didn't work for me. Not only that, but I consider the original Babe to be one of the rare perfect films, and a member of my lifetime top ten list (right up their with Down By Law, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Blue Velvet).
posted by fairmettle at 7:24 AM on August 2, 2022

"The shadow of violence lies hard upon my soul" is not a line I expected from a kid's movie.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:57 PM on August 2, 2022 [5 favorites]