I originally viewed this movie thinking I wanted some summer fun. It wasn’t what I thought (not sure I had any pre-conceived ideas) but I truly liked it and I think you will as well.
We Bought a Zoo, based on a true story, is about family, grief, taking risks and a love that stays with you. Benjamin, (Matt Damon) is a successful adventure writer. Flying into the eye of a hurricane to get a story just made his blood pump. As the story unfolds, Benjamin is juggling a beautiful, but much too responsible seven year-old daughter named Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones) and a sullen, angry fourteen year-old son by the name of Dylan (Colin Ford). Benjamin’s wife had passed away six months earlier and everything in their lives seemed like a challenge. Quitting his job, Benjamin isn’t sure where he’s going, it just isn’t where he is; the streets where every turn reminds him of his beloved wife.
One night as Rosie is once again kept awake by the partying neighbors, Benjamin decides it’s time for a new home. The next day they are in the car with a real estate agent who wants to make them his very first sale but just doesn’t want it to be the “home with a zoo” that Rosie finds in the stack of home listings.
The Zoo is a rundown local zoo that has been maintained by the state government until it could be sold and re-opened. The buyers would be required to do just that. Rosie and Benjamin decide the new “family business” would be quite an adventure and the next thing you know the family is leaving the city and moving into the ram shackled home on the property. Of course, there is always a voice of reason and that would be Benjamin’s brother, Duncan (Thomas Hayden Church) who is promptly overridden. As well as purchasing a rather large contingency of wild animals, they inherit the zoo staff, a rather eclectic group of dedicated animal lovers. Scarlett Johansson plays the hardworking Kelly Foster, the Zookeeper. They quickly realize the zoo is a money pit and the deadline for re-opening is looming.
Benjamin had lived his whole life by what his older brother, Duncan had told him as a child; when the situation called for bravery, “you only need 20 seconds of insane courage”. This advice was crucial when facing down the runaway bear or wading into the middle of a yard full of exotic snakes.
We Bought A Zoo, Director, Cameron Crowe of Jerry McGuire fame brings us a heartwarming true drama about a family uniting together to overcome a tragedy. The family is rewarded for taking a risk, banding together and working hard proving that if you do something for the right reasons nothing can stop you.
By the way, the Mees family still live on the property at the Dartmoor Zoo and it is considered one of the best designed and operated zoos in the country. There’s a small amount of language and some “dark” art by Dylan so you might want to take that into consideration for small children.We Bought a Zoo is easily available and worth the bucks to rent for a delightful summer evening of family fun. As always I look forward to your comments at chastings@rockcliff.com.
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