Charlotte's Web (2006)

Director:

Gary Winick

Writers (WGA):

Susannah Grant (screenplay) and
Karey Kirkpatrick (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 December 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Pig Tales

Plot:

Wilbur the pig is scared of the end of the season, because he knows that come that time, he will end up on the dinner table. He hatches a plan with Charlotte, a spider that lives in his pen, to ensure that this will never happen. |

Plot Keywords:

Pig | Spider | Ponytail | Baby Bottle | Farm

Awards:

7 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Julia Roberts	...	Charlotte the Spider (voice)
Steve Buscemi	...	Templeton the Rat (voice)
John Cleese	...	Samuel the Sheep (voice)
Oprah Winfrey	...	Gussy the Goose (voice)
Cedric the Entertainer	...	Golly the Goose (voice)
Kathy Bates	...	Bitsy the Cow (voice)
Reba McEntire	...	Betsy the Cow (voice)
Robert Redford	...	Ike the Horse (voice)
Thomas Haden Church	...	Brooks the Crow (voice)
André Benjamin	...	Elwyn the Crow (voice)
Dominic Scott Kay	...	Wilbur (voice)
Sam Shepard	...	Narrator (voice)
Abraham Benrubi	...	Uncle the Pig (voice)
Dakota Fanning	...	Fern
Kevin Anderson	...	Mr. Arable

Also Known As:

Schweinchen Wilbur und seine Freunde (Germany)

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:G | Malaysia:U | Australia:G | Singapore:PG | UK:U | Ireland:G | Netherlands:AL | Finland:S | Hong Kong:I | Brazil:Livre | Switzerland:0 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:0 (canton of Vaud) | Portugal:M/6 | Argentina:Atp | Germany:o.Al. | Italy:T | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | Denmark:A | Norway:A | South Korea:All | Sweden:Btl | Canada:G (all jurisdictions)

Filming Locations:

Attwood, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

There were 47 Wilburs on set because the piglets grew up so fast. Also, each one was taught only one "trick", like to stare up or to walk a certain distance.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the two crows are discussing the scarecrow at the junkyard, one comments it has to be the same guy because he's wearing the same hat. The cutaway to the scarecrow shows no hat present.

Quotes:

Wilbur: [looking at Charlotte's new web, at the fair] But is is a good word, Charlotte? I mean, is it a TRUE word? I don't feel like I deserve all of the great words you've written about me...
Charlotte A. Cavatica: Then, Wilbur, it's a PERFECT word.
[Charlotte looks at the web, which says "HUMBLE"]

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (2006-12-09)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Wilbur's Lullaby

Radiant!

Bring your Kleenex. Maybe it's just coz I'm female, or maybe it's coz my mother read this book to me when I was little -- but every time a new word appeared in that web -- tears rolled down my cheeks!

It's very charming. They have kept to the time frame of the book -- it looks like the 1930s-1950s. They haven't tried to "modernize" it with pop culture references and silly jokes like so many kids' movies nowadays do.

Fern isn't break dancing with the pig. (No, there are no musical numbers.)

Fart jokes were kept to a minimum. (I think they are required by law nowadays to put fart jokes in all children's entertainment.)

They didn't dumb down the lovely words E.B. White used -- Charlotte uses her grand language as she speaks to Wilbur and spins her webs.

I kept thinking of "Babe" at the start of the movie. A white runt pig saved. Similar barnyard companions. Even the voice of Wilbur sounds like the voice of Babe. (Even tho Babe was voiced by a 32 y.o. woman and Wilbur by a 9 y.o. boy!) But I think the writers of Babe must have been fans of the classic "Charlotte's Web".

Steve Buscemi as the voice of Templeton the Rat is just perfect. (Poor guy even has a rat-like face -- is that why they cast him?) And the CGI animation is flawless. You can't tell the animated animals from the real ones. Flawlessly blended.

That little pig is SO cute at the beginning -- I just wanted to watch him play in the mud for 10 minutes. (But no, they kept the story moving along.) They even tried to make the spider cute, but that's quite a challenge. Still Julia Roberts' soothing motherly voice helps. (Nevertheless, the little girl next to me climbed into her grandma's lap when the spider appeared.)

And Dakota Fanning, as always, is a darling.

So go -- and if you loved the book as a child, bring plenty of Kleenex!