Quick recap: A pig who thinks he is a sheepdog? NO! Wait…..Yes. Very much so.

There’s no rule that says a giraffe can’t play football

Fun (?) fact:  48 different pigs were used during the filing of Babe. No word on what happened to a pig once it grew up.

My thoughts: Perspective, man. It’s all about perspective. I loved this movie as a kid and even then thought it much wittier than some of the other kid stuff being thrown at me. It wasn’t just a cute animal movie I was watching- it had heart. I don’t remember being too upset by the implications that Babe was about to be eaten, but the lesson that everyone and everything has a purpose has stuck with me. It’s probably been a good 15 years or so since I last watched the movie and it still amazes me how my viewpoint can change so drastically.

The toupee was a weird touch

The animal I most empathized with and felt for this time around was Fly, the female sheepdog.  Granted, the movie is called Babe so it’s not my fault for not really noticing her before, but almost every scene she is in is a heartbreaking one: from watching her puppies being sold to the domestic violence with her Dog Husband (This is a kids’ movie?!) to the most heartbreaking scene of all: watching Babe being led to the slaughter. It was almost too much to watch at that point, knowing that that pig was all she had left and he was about to murdered by the farmer. Animals are way more complicated than I ever imagined.

I also really enjoyed the actors this time and was able to appreciate their depth. Farmer Hoggett’s character interested me especially. James Cromwell, who played Hoggett, originally took the part because he only had a few lines of dialogue and felt like it would be an easy movie,but then ended up on screen more than any other character (except Babe). He did a perfect job restraining his emotions, yet being able to convey exactly how he felt at all times.

That’ll do pig, that’ll do.

Final review: 5/5. It’s a great family film, but maybe for older kids because the subject matter is much heavier than I remembered.

Up next: The Bigamist and then……….#100! What’ll it be??