Gordy (1995)    Miramax Family/Comedy-Drama    RT: 90 minutes    Rated G (some scary moments)    Director: Mark Lewis    Screenplay: Leslie Stevens    Music: Charles Fox    Cinematography: Richard Michalak    Release date: May 12, 1995 (US)    Cast: Doug Stone, Kristy Young, Tom Lester, Deborah Hobart, Michael Roescher, James Donadio, Ted Manson, Tom Key, John Kohler, Afemo Omilami, Justin Garms (voice of Gordy).    Box Office: $3.9M (US)

Rating: ***

 When it comes to talking pigs, everybody remembers Babe, but almost nobody remembers that Gordy beat him into theaters by three months. It didn’t do all that well at the box office; critics didn’t much care for it either. Me, I liked it. It reminds me of the kinds of family-oriented movies that played only on weekend matinees in the 70s and early 80s.

 Movies like Gordy are called family movies, but we all know they’re really for the kids. Parents generally tolerate such movies. I guess it’s because I’m a kid at heart that I like Gordy as much as I do. It’s a low-budget flick. It’s not particularly well-made or well-acted. The very notion of a pig being named CEO of a major corporation is something only a 6YO might believe (notice I said “might”). But you know what? Gordy has a lot of heart. It’s a sweet, gentle movie that always makes me smile. It’s so innocuous, I don’t see how anybody can dislike it.

 Gordy lives an idyllic life on Meadow Brook Farm with his family. That is, until men in trucks come and take them away, leaving little Gordy all alone. Although he’s just a child and doesn’t have much to go on- they’ve been taken up north from whence there is no return- he sets out to find his father, mother and siblings. He first ends up in the care of young country singer Jinnie Sue McAllister (Young) who names him Pinky. She travels around the country with her father Luke (Stone), also a country singer, and their manager Cousin Jake (Lester, Green Acres). Jinnie meets a boy called Hanky (Roescher) at a party for the governor of Arkansas where her father is performing. Gordy becomes a national hero after saving Hanky’s life when the boy falls into a pool. He also becomes Hanky’s pet and later, the mascot of the Royce Company run by his grandfather (Manson, Talladega Nights). This doesn’t set well at all with scheming company executive Gilbert Sipes (Donadio), also the fiancé of Hanky’s mother Jessica (Hobart, I Know What You Did Last Summer). Sipes’ desire to remove Gordy from the picture increases when the pig is named CEO until Hanky comes of age.

 So what does Gordy think of all this? He likes it, but he’d much rather be reunited with his family. It’s a good thing Hanky understands what he’s saying. Apparently, only children (big and small) are capable of doing so. Once it’s known what Gordy wants, Luke and Jake organize a country-wide search for his family who are on their way to a slaughterhouse in Omaha. Their efforts include a big country music concert in Branson, MO. The performers include Roy Clark, Jim Stafford, Moe Bandy, Boxcar Willie, Christy Lane, Buck Trent and Mickey Gilley. Pretty cool line-up for a low-budget kid’s movie, yes? It all comes down to two things: (1) saving Gordy from the machinations of Sipes and his inept goons and (2) a race against time to save Gordy’s family from certain doom at the slaughterhouse.

 Since Gordy is a kid’s movie, both outcomes are a foregone conclusion. Smaller children might be scared of the slaughterhouse; it does look rather foreboding. For the most part, Gordy is a sweet, charming little movie that doesn’t rely on rude humor or fancy CGI effects to keep the little ones interested. But why wouldn’t they like it anyway? I’ve found that kids under 10 tend to stay occupied with movies that feature talking animals. The kid in me thinks Gordy is a lot of fun. It has a very warm feeling to it, kind of like home-cooking. The country music is quite good. The love story between Luke and Jessica could have been better developed. The two kids are cute and appealing without being cloying. Plus, they act like real kids, not miniature adults who sound like Don Rickles. It really does feel like a kid’s movie from 1981. There’s nothing wrong with that at all. Just because something’s new doesn’t mean it’s improved. There’s something comforting about a kid’s movie that’s not an extended commercial for a video game or a line of toys. Gordy is a very nice movie to put on for the kids when it’s raining outside.