‘Babe’ A Very Different Version Of The Oft-Produced Pet Movie

It’s surprising, don’t you think, that there hasn’t been more of an outcry against the Oscar-nominated film “Babe.”

After all, the implicit message of this barnyard romance - yes, romance - is that we should all feel guilty about eating bacon, sausage, ham and pork chops, not to mention duck, goose, sheep, chicken and any and all parts of other farm animals unlucky enough not to have a necessary function in the world of man.

But especially pigs.

Now, no matter what your standing is on the vegetarian issue, you have to admit that “Babe” - now available for video rental (see capsule review below) - is a radical departure from most animal-related movies.

It ranks somewhere between animated features such as “Lady and the Tramp” and Frederick Wiseman’s classic documentary on the meatpacking industry called, appropriately enough, “Meat,” with a little “Charlotte’s Web” thrown in for good measure.

“Babe” is cute, although seldom annoyingly so, but that isn’t its only mood. It evokes a sense of danger in that, unless Babe can find a purpose, he is likely to end up as Christmas dinner. Part of the film’s charm is that the able little piglet doesn’t know this until the danger, for all practical purposes, is past.

But it is exactly this potential threat that sets “Babe” apart. For one thing, most animal movies - even those told through the eyes of the animals themselves - feature more user-friendly main characters. “Old Yeller” or “Black Beauty” or “Lassie” or “The Three Lives of Thomasina” all feature animals that we keep in the house (dogs, cats) or that we somehow use for personal pleasure (horses).

There have been several adaptations of “Black Beauty” (1946, ‘57, ‘71 and ‘94) and “Lassie” (1943, ‘94, etc.) as well as Disney-produced comedies such as “That Darn Cat” (1965), “Shaggy Dog” (1959) and the original “The Incredible Journey” (1963).

There are the more recent versions of “Incredible Journey,” 1993’s “Homeward Bound (featuring the voice of Michael J. Fox, Don Ameche and Sally Field) and this year’s sequel, subtitled “Lost in San Francisco.” And there are the classics, such as “My Friend Flicka” (1943) and the two versions of “The Red Pony” (1949, 1976), as well as a number of wild-kingdom sagas from “Born Free” (1966) to Jean-Jacques Annaud’s 1989 film “The Bear.”

And then there’s always the Japanese-produced kitty-puppy film “The Adventures of Milo and Otis” (1989). For pure cuteness, underscored by the narration by Dudley Moore, “Milo and Otis” still ranks as one of the very best animal videos for small children.

Which is not to say that “Babe,” too, isn’t a good view for impressionable minds. It is. It’s just that you may find it hard to feed your children those sizzling bacon strips after seeing it.

Kids could lose their appetite when they see the little piglet’s face on their plate.

Chekhov another version

One of the best films of 1995 was the late Louis Malle’s version of the Anton Chekhov play “Uncle Vanya.” Titled “Vanya on 42nd Street,” it was Malle’s filming of a workshop production of the play that featured such stars as Julianne Moore, Wallis Shawn and Andre Gregory.

But the film “Country Life,” which is now available on home video, is yet another look at Chekhov’s “Uncle Vanya.” This one, though, is an Australian adaptation that features the presences of Sam Neill and Greta Scacchi.

Dumbo, dumber, dumbest

The Disney production “Operation Dumbo Drop,” when it was playing in the theaters, bragged that it was based on a true story about the U.S. Army trying to provide a sympathetic Vietnamese village with an elephant.

The film is a kind of Marx Brothers comedy featuring Ray Liotta, Danny Glover and Denis Leary on one side, the elephant - who actually, at one point, is depicted skydiving - in the middle, and the Viet Cong on the other.

Yet it’s safe to say that the story of what really happened has about as much in common with this Disney film as the cartoon “Dumbo” has with scientific fact.

Elephants can’t actually fly, and some of us are still not ready to accept the Vietnam war as a wacky comedy (unless, of course, we’re talking about “Apocalypse Now”).

Babe ***1/2

Unlike most animal adventures, which sculpt a lot of sweetness around a moment or two of danger, this G-rated film has a dark side throughout. It attempts to see the workings of an otherwise bright, sunny farm from the animal’s point of view. And that attitude lends added poignancy to one little pig’s coming of age when he finally discovers what likely happened to his parents and siblings. But there is a big portion of love here, especially between the pig and the farmer (Oscar-nominated James Cromwell) who - to the disbelief of his family and friends - enters his barnyard pet in the national sheepdog competition. And the overall tone is of humor.

Jim Henson’s shop created the animatronic effects, and real animals fill in the void. In the end, though, it is a very lovable porker who lives up the the film’s full title, “Babe, the Gallant Pig.” Rated G

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo