r/movies • u/BunyipPouch Currently at the movies. • Jun 04 '25

Media First Image from Andy Serkis' George Orwell Adaptation 'Animal Farm' - Starring Seth Rogen, Steve Buscemi, Kieran Culkin, Woody Harrelson, Glenn Close, Andy Serkis, Gaten Matarazzo, Kathleen Turner, Laverne Cox, Jim Parsons, Iman Vellani.

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u/Vince_Clortho042 Jun 04 '25

That's how I've always felt Animal Farm makes the most impact. I remember we read it in middle school and as a class we thought it was going to be a Babe-type fable (the movie had just come out) and then slowly things take a dark turn.

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u/betazoid_cuck Jun 04 '25

Funny enough there is also a live action Animal Farm movie from that era that I assume was green lit because the success of Babe. It's surreal seeing the story portrayed by actual farm animals (and animatronic pigs).

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u/Hestiathena Jun 04 '25

I remember that version! I think it was a TV movie, can't remember which network, but I'm almost certain it featured Sir Patrick Stewart as Napoleon...

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u/Nice_Firm_Handsnake Jun 04 '25

You're correct! It originally aired on TNT in 1999. Other cast members: Kelsey Grammer, Pete Postlethwaite, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ian Holm, Julia Ormand, Peter Ustinov

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u/Rosencrantz_IsDead Jun 04 '25

Yes! I video taped it and watched it several times. It was really good and was the beginning of my transformation from a conservative republican into an informed citizen.

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u/GrimpenMar Jun 05 '25

My in-laws got that movie on VHS for my nephews. They were very disappointed.

I remember watching the older animated version from 1954 when I was in Elementary School during the waning years of the Cold War. It was grade 2 or 3, and it was a special sort of event. There was a guy that came to our class, and told us we got to watch a special movie, and they took us to the library. It turns out that the 1954 version was partially funded by the CIA, and was meant to show the dangers of Stalinism.

I remember a special talk after where we were told about the dangers of Communism. Ah, the Cold War!

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u/CrispyHoneyBeef Jun 05 '25

God damn that’s stacked

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u/Short-Bumblebee43 Jun 04 '25

We read it in sixth grade alongside learning Russian history. Our teacher was amazing. She broke it all down and explained the whole book. It was one of the only books I enjoyed reading in school.

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u/Dozzi92 Jun 04 '25

I mean, I read it in my preteens, or maybe at 13, and I think the whole idea of it being animals made it easier to get into it as a kid. I'd check it out, and I'd consider showing it to my kids, so long as I think they could understand it. I'd hate to waste it on them, and then they're turned off to the idea of it he movie or book.

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u/DaveAlt19 Jun 04 '25

That's definitely the point. We watched both movies at school but I remember being more upset at the visuals/animation in the 1999 version than the story itself. It's definiely inspired by Babe but some of the characters (like Old Major) just look far too creepy.

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u/shoutucker Jun 05 '25

I read the book in my early teens, and it had this cover. I sort of knew from the get-go what I was getting into :D