“Babe: Pig in the City” picks up immediately after the original movie, “Babe,” leaves off. Babe has just won the sheepdog competition and returns home to much cheering and acclaim. All in all, he and the boss (James Cromwell) are pleased to return to the quiet of the farm, where the boss picks up on things left undone, including the fixing of the water pump attached to the well. But when Babe gets curious and wants to see just what the boss is doing down in the well, he causes an accident that leaves the boss injured, and the boss’s wife must take over his chores.
However, soon the bills are unpaid and the bank comes to call. Fearing they will lose the farm, the boss’s wife decides to take Babe to a fair where they have been invited to demonstrate some sheepherding techniques. There will be a speaking fee paid to them, and perhaps with this little bit of money, they can save the farm.
Babe is anxious to do whatever he can to help the boss, and so he willingly flies with the boss’s wife to the big city. However, upon arrival, they discover that cities and farm folk don’t mix. It takes the boss’s wife a long time to find a hotel that will take animals, and when she does, she has to sneak in the back door—there are health codes that must be considered, and this hotel is operating on the sly.
Animals of every sort live in this establishment, and for the first time in his life, Babe comes up against creatures that are genuinely unkind. He falls in with a troop of thieving chimpanzees who steal the boss’s wife’s suitcase and want Babe to enter show business with them, but it doesn’t go over too well with Babe.
Despite all the urging to turn aside from his wholesome ways, Babe retains his integrity and the movie does have cute moments throughout. However, there are some dark moments as well. The animals are taken to the shelter, and the scene where they are all rounded up could be upsetting to small children. Babe also runs afoul of some mean dogs, and that could be a bit much as well. Overall, I didn’t like the movie as much as I did the original, but I did find much to appreciate about it on its own merits. This film was rated PG.
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