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On Demand picks

September 4, 2009

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BABE
(Encore on Comcast) The best children’s movie of the year, with even more to see than amazing special effects that allow barnyard animals to chat with each other. It tells a sweet but not saccharine story about a guileless piglet who is determined to herd sheep along with his adopted family of border collies. In the process, Babe the pig proves that personality is more important than species, and that niceness gets results. (G; runs through Sept. 24)

A PERFECT WORLD
(Encore On Comcast) Gritty, resonant, tensely coiled, this sure-handed story of a fatherless boy befriended by a convict on the run in Texas in 1963 continues Clint Eastwood’s and Kevin’s Costner’s winning streaks. Costner plays an explosive killer, so tough and faceted - this was new territory for him. And as a Texas Ranger in determined pursuit, Eastwood brings provocative shadings to material that in other hands would be reduced to formula. (PG-13; runs through Sept. 24)

A SIMPLE WISH
(Comcast Movies and Events) A cute special-effects driven adventure that generates moderate laughs. Martin Short is a hapless male fairy godmother whose feeble attempts to grant a little girl’s wish go comically awry. (PG; runs through Sept. 24)

MICHAEL SAUNDERS

© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.

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