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BABE
Studio: Universal
Year: 1995
Length: 1 hr 32 mins
Genre: Family/Talking Farm Animals/Sheep Herding
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
BD Resolution: 1080p
BD Video Codec: VC-1 (@ an average 30 mbps)
Color/B&W: Color
Audio:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (@ an average 2.1 mbps, oscillating up to 4.0 mbps)
French DTS 5.1
Spanish DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Film Rating: G (Moments of implied and threatened violence)
Release Date: April 5, 2011
Starring: James Cromwell and Magda Szubanski
Based upon the Book by Dick King-Smith
Screenplay by: George Miller & Chris Noonan
Directed by: Chris Noonan
Produced by: George Miller, Doug Mitchell and Bill Miller (Film made by Kennedy/Miller)
Film Rating: 4/5
Babe is a film that I missed in its theatrical run, and in several DVD releases, so it was a pleasant surprise to finally watch the movie, as presented on Universal’s new Blu-ray edition. It’s a genuinely sweet and moving story, following a few vignettes in the young life of Babe the farm pig, who winds up becoming the first shepherding pig in anyone’s memory. From the beginning, the film tells you that this is the story of “an unprejudiced heart”, which is crucial to understanding Babe’s adventures. The key is that the pig takes everyone at their word and pretty much always tries to use impeccable manners. And for that reason, this movie is a great family film, as time has proven. At the same time, I have to acknowledge that the film goes a fair amount deeper than you might expect, and many scenes contain implications that the adults in the room will pick up on different levels than the kids. I admit also being surprised by the G rating – in that there are several scenes of implied violence, a little blood, and even one scene where a loaded shotgun is aimed at Babe. But this film really moved me, partly in scenes where the narration was in deliberate contradiction to the actions onscreen, and largely at the film’s climax, which is in fact played in near silence. This is a nice, unpretentious film and, as I was pleasantly reminded afterwards, it’s also a Best Picture nominee from 1995 to boot. I have no reservations about recommending this title for purchase.
Babe has been released on Blu-ray this past week, following two past releases on standard definition DVD. The Blu-ray edition holds a high definition picture and sound transfer, along with most of the special features available on the 2003 special edition DVD. Further Blu-ray functionality is also part of the package, including the My Scenes bookmarking function and pocket BLU.
VIDEO QUALITY 3 ½/5
Babe is presented in a colorful 1080p VC-1 1.85:1 transfer that looks quite good, including many scenes of lush primary colors washing across the screen. The extensive CGI work done to literally put words in the mouths of Babe and the other animals is still fairly seamless here, although 16 years of continued advances in CGI now age this work a bit. Flesh tones and features are quite detailed, particularly James Cromwell, whose craggy facial features fill the screen many times. I should note that I am watching the film on a 40” Sony XBR2 HDTV. If anyone is watching the film on a larger monitor and is having issues, please post them on this thread.
AUDIO QUALITY 3 ½/5
Babe is presented in an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix in English, along with standard DTS 5.1 mixes in French and Spanish. Most of the sound comes from the front channels, but the surrounds get some work both from the score and from frequent, quiet farm atmospheric sounds.
SPECIAL FEATURES 3/5
The Blu-Ray presentation of Babe comes with the usual BD-Live connectivity and My Scenes functionality, along with pocket BLU functionality. Most of the standard definition extra features are carried over from the 2003 DVD, including a “Making of” featurette about the CGI, an interview with George Miller, and a feature commentary with Miller. Some children’s games have been omitted from the 2003 edition, but that’s the only absence.
The Making of Babe – (3:56, 480p, Full Frame) This quick featurette focuses on the work of Rhythm & Hues, the CGI animation company that augmented real and animatronic animals to make them speak. Several shots of Babe, the dogs and the sheep speaking are shown in their original state, and then with the CGI work as it was applied.
George Miller on Babe – (6:12, 480p, Non-Anamorphic) This interview with George Miller actually covers a lot more ground than you might think. He starts with a recounting of how he first encountered Dick King-Smith’s novel, from the description he heard while flying to London in 1986. (I believe this would be during the time he was finishing The Witches of Eastwick, for those keeping track.) He says that he heard a normally unemotional BBC announcer break up giggling while trying to describe the book as the best family piece of the prior year. After he read the book, he immediately determined to make the movie. (I have a feeling this process was delayed until after Jurassic Park proved that CGI had advanced far enough to make the talking animals possible in a manner that wouldn’t look like Muppets – although Jim Henson’s group did create the animatronic characters for the movie.) Miller also relates some other funny tales, including an argument he had with Tom Pollock, then the Vice-Chair of Universal about how his unprejudiced movie was making a villain out of the only cat in the story. So, Miller had them add a note into the narration that there are bad apples everywhere, and this specific cat just happens to be a bad apple… One element notably missing from this interview is any discussion of the work of director Chris Noonan.
Commentary by George Miller – This scene-specific commentary repeats most of what we’ve heard in the interview, but expands in every area. Miller goes silent at times, but then pipes back up in a minute or two with new insights. Miller’s knowledge of the production history, and of all the creative choices made throughout the process, make this an interesting discussion – particularly his thoughts about the silent finale. Again, the one thing missing here is any discourse about director Chris Noonan. The implication being made here is that, like M. Night Shyamalan’s recent Devil, this project had a much more active producer who was controlling a lot more of the situation than you would normally expect. (There’s a giveaway of this during the film – several scenes feature looming dolly-in close-ups that are regular trademarks of George Miller’s other movies, including The Road Warrior and his segment of Twilight Zone: The Movie.
BD-Live - The more general BD-Live screen is accessible via the menu, which makes various online materials available, including tickers, trailers and special events.
My Scenes - The usual bookmarking feature is included here.
pocket BLU – The Blu-ray comes with pocket BLU functionality for those viewers who want to make use of the appropriate iPhone or smartphone applications.
The film and the special features are subtitled in English, French and Spanish. The usual pop-up menu is present, along with a complete chapter menu.
IN THE END...
Babe is a film that I’m glad I finally have been able to see. It’s a family film with a bit of a deeper message than I expected, and it’s a solid piece of professional filmmaking all the way round. The Blu-ray release provides a good way to revisit this movie, or to experience it for the first time. I encourage anyone who hasn’t seen this movie to purchase the Blu-ray, or at least give it a chance via rental.
Kevin Koster
April 12, 2011
