Review of We Bought a Zoo (2011) by Dann M — 17 Jun 2013

Wednesday, June 12, 2013.

(2011) We Bought A Zoo.

DRAMA COMEDY.

Based on the true story written by Benjamin Mee, directed and co-adapted into the screenplay by Cameron Crowe of Jerry McGuire starring Matt Damon as Benjamin Mee a father who is still grieving for his wife who finally decides to move into a house which also happens to be a zoo 1) because his 7 year old daughter can't sleep well because of some noisy teenagers partying and 2) his 13 year old son finally got expelled for stealing some money. While there he hooks himself up with the head caretaker, Kelly Foster played by Scarlett Johansson running it with 8 other people including a 13 year old girl Lily Miska played by Elle Fanning who is coincidently the same age as Benjamin Mee's son Dylan Mee (Colin Ford) who is the only person in the family totally against the zoo both his father and his 7 year old sister want to have.

Anyone can tell by watching this that the story was compromised since theirs hardly any authenticity throughout this entire film. Some of the few things that weren't addressed upon watching this was really centered on Dylan, the 13 yr old son who verbally said throughout the film that he had friends in school who miss him but they seem to be completely absent or non-existent- they neither phone him nor converse with him on any way- not by computer or by anything by that matter, or the fridge full of lasagna given by an old friend which no one in the household appear to eat any, or right at the beginning and upon his daughter who couldn't sleep why couldn't the father call the police for the teens partying for disturbing the peace which wasn't addressed. Specific things are shown but they're were hardly addressed, given an explanation to, nor even answered at all which can ruin the flow of the overall experience. Also, the persona seemed to be the same as Crowe's other film "Jerry McGuire" to which I feel Tom Cruise would be better suited for this role than Matt Damon since he seems to be somewhat uncomfortable.

1 out of 4.