Babe: Pig in the City (1998)

Absolutely Brilliant!

Absolutely brilliant

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

They should of not make this film in first place since its not like the first one. The plot did not make any sense to me. Why did they have to go to the city in first place ? The whole city thing felt like that they just put random ideas together with out any thought. i seriously did not get the ending at all. This film is not worth your time at all.

If you are expecting the first Babe you will be disappointed. I don't want to say the first one is better. It's completely different. They take Babe out of the comfort of the farm and into the city. What I really liked about this movie getting to see more of his wife. I loved the farmer in the first movie. I thought it was great that his wife got more to do in this one. I thought she was really funny. I loved the new animals. I did miss the farm animals. They are there. Just not as much. This is a darker movie. I think if you go into it with an open mind you will enjoy it. Just don't expect the first Babe. This one is special in its on right.

George Miller's Babe Pig In The City is quite the underestimated film. Following on the sweet, good natured fable that was the first Babe film, Miller delved into his creative well, pulled out all the stops and came up with a rip roaring, wondrously exciting sequel that outdoes the original in almost every way. The production design and sets alone are enough to make the film a winner, the titular city comprised of aspects of LA, New York, Sydney, Paris, Vegas and many more. It's every rural village's idea of what the cities are like, a gigantic metropolitan dream world of a creation. Miller starts, in a charming sequence, at Babe's humble beginnings on the picturesque, old world farmland and hurtles him on a madcap adventure in this city of cities, joined by some of his farmland friends (Ferdinand the duck and those adorable singing Mice, whose musical numbers here are hilarious), and sees him meet a whole host of new animals. This is where the magic of the film really takes hold, as we see hundreds of dogs, cats, multiple species of monkeys, and a hapless goldfish all come to amazingly realistic life courtesy of Miller and team. Each animal is beautifully voiced and given his or her own dignity, grace and absolutely grounded story arc to the point where this no longer just becomes a children's film, but a surrealist take on city life, moral hardships and personality and classist conflict as enacted by the national geographic channel. My favourites are the sinister German shepherd (of course voiced by a German dude), the wise old orangutan Thelonius who heartbreakingly won't leave a risky situation without putting his human clothes on, and the opera singing cats (laughed so hard). Mazda Szubenski deserves a medal for her physical comedy and tart, spry turn as the farmers wife, diligently pursuing babe and way in over her head. James Chromwell briefly reprises his wonderful Farmer Hoggett characters. Mickey Rooney, looking so old and delirious I'd be surprised if he knew what film he was working on, let alone what planet, has a demented cameo. But it's the animals show, and amongst all the cartoonish, wild goings on, there's the wonderful theme that "a kind and steady heart" can help you on your travels, which provides a touching, yet not preachy undercurrent. A momentous achievement, miles in different territory than the first Babe film, and an absolute joy every time I revisit it.

A very excellent family movie, whose anarchic attitude might be off putting to some people - especially if you don't expect it. Approach this with the kind of mindset you would approach a Terry Gilliam movie (just let your imagination take seat and drive), and you will find much to love and think about here. There is plenty of ridiculously chaotic and fun action to make it a treat for even the youngest of viewers as well. Just like Gilliam usually does, it manages to express its worry over the continuing creep of alienation between us all, but never gets preachy about it. Furthermore, it is fun, smart, humane, and above all, it teaches mutual respect and tolerance. We're all in this together right, nobody really knows what's up, it's nice if people would be generally more aware of that fact. This movie encourages that attitude, which is why I think it is a pretty important piece of family cinema, as innocuous as it may seem on first glance.