Babe (1995)

Babe is a 1995 family film that tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog. The main animal characters are played by a combination of real and animatronic pigs and Border Collies. The film is based on the book The Sheep-Pig (known as Babe: The Gallant Pig in the U.S.) by Dick King-Smith, and later spawned a sequel called Babe: Pig in the City. Babe was filmed in Robertson, New South Wales, Australia. The talking-animal visual effects were done by Rhythm & Hues Studios. Although the setting and style of the film are distinctly British/Australasian pastoral, many of the human speaking parts were overdubbed from Australian to American accents for popular acceptance in the American film market.

After a piglet's mother is taken away by humans to be slaughtered, Babe is picked out for a "guess the weight" booth at a county fair. Farmer Arthur Hoggett guesses his weight and wins the pig. Babe is brought to his farm and allowed to stay with the female sheepdog, Fly (a Border Collie), and her pups. Maa, an elderly resident sheep, tells him to watch out for the dogs. A duck named Ferdinand wakes the farm each morning by crowing. He persuades Babe to help him destroy the alarm clock because it threatens his mission. They succeed, but wake the cat and destroy the living room, getting Babe and the cat covered with paint. Rex, Fly's mate and leader of the farm animals, orders Babe to stay away from Ferdinand (who is now a fugitive) and the house. The Hoggetts discuss Christmas dinner and whether to have roast pork or duck à l'orange. Mrs. Hoggett has her mind set on pork, but Hoggett convinces her to keep Babe so they can show him at the fair. Fly's puppies are put up for sale and she is brokenhearted at the separation. Babe asks whether he can call her "Mom," and Fly licks his face. Maa and the other sheep are taken out to the fields. The day after Christmas Babe hears the sheep baaing and investigates. He witnesses two men stealing the sheep but is chased off by their dog. Babe alerts Rex, Fly and Hoggett, who prevent Maa and some of the other sheep from being taken. The next day Hoggett sees Babe herd the hens, separating the brown ones from the white ones. Impressed, he takes the pig to the sheep fields along with Fly and Rex. Rex feels threatened by Babe when Hoggett tells Babe rather than Rex to herd the sheep, and is furious with Fly for helping him. Fly advises Babe to be rough, so he bites one of the sheep. This angers Maa, who advises him to ask politely. The sheep cooperate and Babe herds them out of their pen, impressing Farmer Hoggett and amazing the dogs. Rex regards Babe's behavior as an insult to sheepdogs, and that night attacks his mate for putting ideas in Babe's head. Fly's right front leg is injured, and Hoggett is bitten by Rex while trying break up the fight. Rex is chained to the dog house and sedated. It is now Babe's job to herd the sheep. Hoggett considers entering Babe in the sheepdog trials. One morning, Babe runs out to the field and witnesses a pack of dogs attacking the sheep. He scares them away, but Maa has been injured and dies from her wounds. Hoggett arrives to see Babe standing over Maa with blood on his snout and assumes the worst. As he prepares to shoot Babe, Fly tries talking to the sheep for the first time to find out what happened. She distracts Hoggett by barking long enough for Mrs. Hoggett to come out and tell how she heard that wild dogs killed lambs on another farm. When Mrs. Hoggett goes on a trip, the farmer enters Babe in the sheepdog trials under the name "Pig". That evening, it is so wet outside that Hoggett lets Babe inside the house along with Fly. The Hoggetts' cat, Duchess, scratches Babe when he tries talking to her, and she is thrown into the rain. Ferdinand returns from his self-imposed exile. Duchess gets back into the house and tells Babe that humans eat pigs. Fly confirms this, which crushes Babe. The next morning Fly discovers Babe has run away. He is found by Hoggett barely alive. Babe refuses to eat despite encouragement from Rex, who has softened his attitude. Hoggett gives him a drink in a bottle and sings "If I Had Words" to Babe, and eventually dances for him. This restores Babe's faith in the farmer and he begins eating. At the trials the sheep refuse to listen to Babe, and Rex runs to the farm to find out what to do. The sheep give Rex a secret password only for Babe's use, and make Rex promise to treat the sheep better. The crowd laughs as Babe tries herding the sheep, but using the password, Babe convinces the sheep to do what he asks, and they perform flawlessly. After getting perfect scores and the adoration of the crowd, Babe sits next to Hoggett, who says, "That'll do, Pig. That'll do."