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    • WSR Detailed LaserDisc Review

    Babe: Pig In The City
    Genre:Family

    Reviewed In Issue 33 Of Widescreen Review® Stars:
    Magda Szubanski, James Cromwell, Mary Stein, Mickey Rooney, Roscoe Lee Browne And The Voice Talents Of E.G. Daily, Danny Mann, Glenne Headly, Steven Wright

    WSR Review Scores
    Picture Rating:
    Sound Rating:
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    Reference Systems
    Critics' Composite Score:
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    Supplementals

    DVD General Information
    (Studio/Distributor): Universal Studios Home Video
    (Catalog Number): LD83607-WS
    (MPAA Rating): G
    (Retail Price): $29.98
    (Running Time In Minutes): 96
    (Color Type): Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access): Yes
    (Closed Captioned): Yes
    (Theatrical Release): 1998
    (LD Release Date): 05/99
    (THX® Digitally Mastered): No

    Credits Information
    (Director): George Miller
    (Screenplay/Written By): George Miller, Judy Morris & Mark Lamprell
    (Story): NA
    (Music): Nigel Westlake (Music)
    (Director Of Photography):
    (Production Designer): Roger Ford (Production Designer)
    (Visual Effects):
    (Costume Designer):
    (Editor): Jay Friedkin & Margaret Sixel
    (Supervising Sound Editors):
    (Re-Recording Mixers):
    (Executive Producers): Barbara Gibbs (Executive Producer)
    (Co-Producers): NA
    (Producers): George Miller, Doug Mitchell & Bill Miller

    DVD Picture Information
    (Principal Photography): Academy Standard Flat
    (Theatrical Aspect Ratio): 1.85:1
    (Measured LaserDisc Aspect Ratio): 1.85:1

    DVD Sound Information
    (DVD Soundtrack): Dolby Digital Surround
    (Theatrical Sound): DTS, SDDS & Dolby Digital
    (Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
    (Remastered Dolby Digital): No
    (Remastered DTS Digital Surround): No
    (Additional Languages):

    WSR Narrative Review
    Story Synopsis:
    The sequel to the Oscar®-nominated movie, Babe: Pig In The City takes friends Babe, Ferdy and Mrs. Hoggett on an event-filled trip to the often not-so-friendly big city on a mission to raise enough money to save their farm.

    LaserDisc Picture:
    The picture exhibits nice quality with sharp and detailed images and excellent contrast and shadow delineation. Color balance is wonderfully rendered with natural fleshtones, deep solid blacks and fairy-tale enhancing vibrant hues. Contrast and shadow detail are superb throughout. Only minor noise and video artifacts are noticeable. The LaserDisc is matted at 1.85:1.

    LaserDisc Soundtrack:
    The 5.1 Dolby® Digital soundtrack and matrix PCM audio are terrific with fascinating dialogue synced to the animals’ facial expressions. Though obviously ADR-processed, the effect nicely integrates with the human characters’ dialogue. The music score is nicely recorded with an expansive soundstage that wraps deep into the surrounds. Surround envelopment is often aggressive and effects are often nicely delineated in the discrete’s split surrounds, with occasional center back surround imaging. The sound is often dimensionally holosonic though at times there is often no surround signal in discrete version. The matrix PCM version effectively bleeds surround envelopment for a more satisfying spatial experience. Foley effects are perfectly produced. Bass sounds natural and at times is .1 LFE enhanced.
    (Surround Bass Below 50Hz): Yes
    (Aggressive System Surround): Yes
    (Intense 25Hz Bass): Yes
    (Deep Bass Challenging): No
    (Aggressive 0.1 LFE):
    (Holosonic Soundfield): Yes
    (Aggressive Split Surround): Yes
    (Center Back Surround Imaging): Yes
    (Directionalized Dialogue): No
    Superb Sound Effects Recording Quality:
    Superb Music Score Recording Quality:
    Superb Special Visual Effects Quality:
    Superb Color Fidelity:
    Superb Cinematography:
    Reference LaserDisc:
    Collector Edition:
    DVD To LaserDisc Comparison:
    Both the LaserDisc and DVD are pleasing no doubt due to the film’s fine telecine transfer. But the anamorphically enhanced DVD viewed in component video, exhibits finer detail and definition. Color balance is wonderfully rendered with natural fleshtones, deep solid blacks and fairy-tale enhancing vibrant hues. Contrast and shadow detail are superb throughout. Digital compression artifacts and occasional image enhancement sometimes distracts on the DVD, while minor noise and video artifacts on the LaserDisc are noticeable. The LaserDisc, and anamorphic and letterbox DVD are matted at 1.85:1. The 5.1 Dolby® Digital soundtrack on DVD and LaserDisc and the LaserDisc matrix PCM soundtrack are terrific with fascinating dialogue synced to the animals’ facial expressions. Though obviously ADR-processed, the effect nicely integrates with the human characters’ dialogue. The music score is nicely recorded with an expansive soundstage that wraps deep into the surrounds. Surround envelopment is often aggressive and effects are often nicely delineated in the discrete’s split surrounds, with occasional center back surround imaging. The sound is often dimensionally holosonic though at times there is often no surround signal in discrete version. The matrix PCM version effectively bleeds surround envelopment for a more satisfying spatial experience. Foley effects are perfectly produced. Bass sounds natural and at times is .1 LFE enhanced.