Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Babe: Pig in the City

Following his glorious victory at the sheep herding competition, Babe returns home to the family farm where he is the pride of farmer Hoggett and his wife. Soon though, his master is injured in an unfortunate well accident and with Mrs. Hoggett unable to maintain the property, the farm soon faces foreclosure. Now their only hope lies in an offer for the marvelous young pig to display his considerable talents over seas, but once they reach the big city, Babe becomes separated from his owner and once again finds himself in a leadership position, this time of stray dogs and abandoned circus animals. "Babe: Pig in the City" is a dark and exceedingly strange follow-up to the delightful 1995 Oscar winning original that eliminates, largely, the two best elements of that tremendous success: James Cromwell and the voice of Christine Cavanaugh. Director George Miller, who produced the first film, opts to fashion a more surreal, dystopian tone and the results are particularly jarring, especially for anyone endeared by the magic of the original.