Babe
Clip 2: Christmas barbarians
2 min 0 sec
Taken from the feature Babe (1995)
Original title classification G – this clip chosen to be G
Availability of the complete title
Curator’s clip description
Mrs Hoggett (Magda Szubanski) has just measured Babe, because she’s planning on roast pork for Christmas lunch. The old ewe Maa (Miriam Flynn) is disgusted at the thought of someone eating a pig, but Babe is none the wiser. He sings a happy Christmas carol. Mr Hoggett (James Cromwell) has second thoughts about killing the pig.
Curator’s notes
The sound of Christmas carolling at the end gives this scene an unexpectedly dark tinge. A time of joy for the humans is very clearly a time of terror for the animals. Ferdy the duck, as ever, is fully aware of what’s occurring – ‘Christmas means carnage’ he quacks from the rooftop, just before this scene begins. Maa too is sadly aware – which is why she tells Babe not to plan too far ahead.
Paul Byrnes, curator
have teachers’ notes.
