We Bought a Zoo

I probably tend to be more positive about movies than some reviewers are.  After all, two of the movies I liked in 2011 were on the "Ten Worst Movies" list on Yahoo. earlier this week.  BUT..."We Bought a Zoo" is one of the best movies we've seen in a long time.  (Now I sound like former Vicar Brad..."It was the best...") 

I'm not sure what I was expecting from this movie.  I thought it would be funny.  It was not particularly funny but it was sweet and positive.  I thought that there would be cheap slapstick humor such as was in "Zookeeper" (on Yahoo's worst movie list in 2011) but there was no such thing.  Oh, there was the escape of the dangerous bear but the subsequent encounter and recapture was pretty well done.

OK.  OK.  Get to the movie.  The premise of the movie, based on a true story and what I would call a dramody (comedy/drama), is that widower Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon) needs to start over after his wife's recent death and his son's expulsion from school and so buys a dilapidated zoo and its animals and staff and takes on the challenge of reopening it for the public.  Benjamin struggles with his relationship with his 14 year old son, Dylan (Colin Ford), and Dylan's seemingly dark attitude about life as expressed in his art work.  His daughter, 7 year old Rosie, is happy with the zoo and the animals and sometimes is like the "Mommy" to her grieving father who wants to get away from the sad reminders in the city of his deceased wife.  He spends all he has to prepare the zoo and finds himself near bankruptcy but then is blessed with a surprise nest egg that his wife has hidden away to help him.  His brother, Duncan, (Thomas Haden Church) tries to dissuade Benjamin from using the rest of his money to throw at a dream.  Benjamin's innovations with the zoo are apparently in real life, a new wave of zoo engineering, but the movie doesn't focus on that.

Some might suggest that the movie and how it unfolds is predictable but there are some deep emotions in the movie.  The depiction of Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones) is wonderful.  Her smile lights up the screen and lights up their lives. Benjamin is torn in his love for his son.  They are alike and that's the problem.  Benjamin loves him and loves and misses his wife dearly.  The movie gives us time to appreciate his mood and moodiness and his joy and sadness about his lost love.  Though Kelly Foster (played by Scarlett Johannson) is his new love life, their guarded relationship is handled tastefully and carefully.  Benjamin challenges his son to consider "20 seconds of insane courage" in telling his new girl friend what he thinks of her.  Later Benjamin explains to his children that this was how he met their mother, Katherine (played by Stephanie Szostak)

It's difficult to explain why this movie was special.  You have to see it to understand.  If you get past the premise and the zoo and even the animals and some of the regular characters, you quickly see that this is not a movie about zoos.  It is a movie about love for spouse, children, parents, co-workers, and love for life and work.  It is on my top ten list of best movies on 2011.

J Edgar

Wow!  This was quite a movie.  Having grown up during the last 25 years of J. Edgar Hoover's "reign" I was interested in this movie for historical reasons.  Also, the jokes about Hoover's personal life and the mixed signals about his abuse of power present an interesting commentary on life in America.  Hoover brought the FBI into the modern era and created policies about fingerprinting and crime scene procedures that greatly aided crime solving.  His love for his country and his staunch anti-Communist thoughts were commended by many.  At the same time he kept files on political "enemies" and seemed to keep his thumb on most of the presidents under whom he served.

Alice said she saw and learned things about Hoover that she really didn't want to know.  That may sound like the movie sensationalized his life but this just isn't true.  You have to see the movie to understand as the director Clint Eastwood presents a careful look at this life with occasional hints about Hoover's unique personality. 

Leonardo DiCaprio is amazingly transformed into an old and young Hoover as the movie goes back and forth to events in the 1930's and the Lindbergh kidnapping in particular and also the events toward the end of his life.  Judi Dench as his mother is outstanding in her portrayal.  Naomi Watts as Hoover's lifelong personal secretary, Helen Gandy, is also stellar in her performance.  In my opinion, the only problem with the movement back and forth finds his number one assistant (Clyde Tolson portrayed by Armie Hammer) having very poor makeup in the depiction of his later years.

You can learn a lot from this movie but you also have to take certain parts with a grain of salt and a discerning mind.

It was a great movie.

Jack and Jill

I confess that I don't like Adam Sandler and I went to his "Jack and Jill" fully believing that I would not care for this movie.  I was a bit surprised that the movie was better than I thought it would.  I liked the fact that the Jack character kept Sandler from saying and doing much at all.  the Jill character also played by Sandler was a bit irritating but somehow likeable.

Oh, I would never give this movie four stars but I confess that it was definitely better than Cars 2 and, yes, dare I say it, even better than Puss in Boots.

OK.  The premise is based on twins and Jill (Jack's twin) comes for her annual Christmas visit and simply stays.  Surprisingly, despite her irritating personality she is wooed by Al Pacino playing himself and Felipe.  I'm not quite sure how Jill got together with Felipe but their friendship clicked.  I guess I was out for popcorn when they they ended up having eyes for each other.  Pacino does what he can to have a relationship with Jill but she just doesn't like him.  Jack comes to her rescued after insulting Jill and manages to get everyone together and make everyone happy.  Hey, the plot is far from deep but it does work.

The movie is cute and also funny at times, though Alice felt it wasn't as funny as she expected.  It was probably only one step above the average made for TV movie but, as I say again and again, it wasn't that bad.

Puss In Boots

What a disappointment.  The ads were inviting.  The premise was encouraging.  The Shrek movies introduced this wonderful character.  I really wanted to see this movie but the movie let us down.  Thankfully, we saw it before the evening prices kicked in and, thankfully, we did not see it in 3-D for the extra cost.  Alice said that it might have been better in 3-D.  I doubt it.  One lady was heard to say to the ushers after the movie, "What a great movie."  I looked at the same usher and said, "Did she see the same movie we saw?"  He laughed because he knew.  Alice said that "Cars 2" was better than this movie.  Just barely.  Well, I probably liked this movie slightly more but just slightly.

I just couldn't warm up to Humpty Dumpty, one of the key characters.  He had no redeeming qualities.  Oh, Puss in Boots claimed him as a friend.  I'm not sure why.  He tricked him.  Cheated him.  Deceived him.  Left him to die.  Come on, this guy was worse than some of the evil characters in the Shrek movies.

I did like Jack and Jill.  Their dialogue, brief as it was, might have produced the only laughs in the movie.

Oh, the kids will probably like it but it was not the adult fare of the Shrek movies.  Think twice before you spend a lot of money on this movie.  Wait and rent the video.  I think that it will be out soon enough.

The Big Year

This movie is for the birds.  Really.  But it's a pretty good movie.  It moves a little slowly but, hey, how much high drama can you find in a contest to view and record as many North American birds as possible in a year?

Three men portrayed by Steve Martin (Stu), Jack Black (Brad), and Owen Wilson (Kenny Bostwick) set out to break the record first set by Kenny (732).  They take planes, trains, automobiles, bicycles, helicopters and more to criss cross North America in their quest.  The opening credits say that it is a true story with only the facts being changed. 

I guess it's supposed to be a comedy but the laughs are real and careful.  It's just a sweet metaphor about real and honorable competition.  Stu is trying to retire and finds that his "Big Year" pursuit makes him rethink his life, his family, his wife, and his new grandchild.  Jack is divorced and holding a boring computer job but manages to find the time and energy to pursue the contest while holding down his job.  His mother is supportive but his father (Brian Dennehey) is less enthusiastic.  As the movie progresses the tenderness of Brad's relationship with his father is wonderful.  Kenny's role is as an honest and very moral jerk.  He's not above deceiving his fellow contestants but is above cheating in this contest based totally on the honor system.  Winning, however, is everything and he loses his loving wife because he loves his pursuit of the birds more than her.

I won't reveal who wins but, in the end, I see all three characters as winners. 

I think that you will enjoy the movie.  We did.

Courageous

The movie "Courageous" needs to be seen by men, youth and boys but also by any family member who wishes to learn some things about parenting and love.

Some would probably disagree, but I feel that this movie is not preachy and certainly doesn't match the usual criteria of what people might call a "religious movie" or a movie that deals with "religion" on some level.  Yes, there is a church scene and a clear witness of Christ as Savior but it is definitely a part of the plot.  (I do have to smile that the inside of the church in the Father's Day scene seems far larger than the outside of the church as depicted.  Dramatic license, I guess!)

The premise of the movie is stated by the sheriff himself as he urges his Albany, Georgia, deputies to spend more time with their families based on the statistic that fatherless or "under-fathered" children are more likely to get into trouble.  One father, Adam (Alex Kendrick) adores his daughter but is distant from his son.  Nathan (Ken Bevel) has strict rules for his daughter while Shane (Kevin Downes) is divorced and trying to raise his son and the rookie David (Ben Davies) has a child from a teenage fling.  The group also befriends Javier (Robert Amaya) who is struggling to find and keep work.  I love the Javier character.  I think you will too.  Adam's daughter is killed in a car accident and this is an awakening for him to to become and be the father he needs to be for his surviving son.  His study of the Bible leads him to challenge his four friends to take being a father seriously.  He doesn't push them to do it, but they agree to pledge to become better fathers.

There are many fine subplots as one of the men fails to keep his vow, another faces an employer asking him to cheat, one realizes he needs to step up and take responsibility for his actions, and two others must build trust with their very different children.  An exciting car chase and gun battle with a drug gang provides as much excitement as from any contemporary movie.

Ultimately, the closing verses of Joshua (Joshua 24:15), "Choose this day whom you will serve...but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord," are words that inspire the movie and the audience.  It was one of those movies where you hear clapping at the end.

The movie is in the tradition of "Facing the Giants" and "Fireproof" and is one of those movies where you can invite your neighbor or friend who will discover it is very moral but not heavy handed.  There is drama, compassion, humor, and morality as well God's love in Christ.  I'm convinced you will love the movie.

"Dolphin Tale"

Another great movie...and more than a movie about "buddies" though one could claim that the Dolphin and the young hero Sawyer Nelson (Nathan Gamble) are buddies.  This is based on a true story.  In Florida on his way to summer school a failing student named Sawyer and a beach comber "discover" a dying dolphin on the beach (Winter) and Sawyer calls an animal rescue unit.  He and a young girl named Hazel (Cozi Zuehlsdorff) are the motivating factor for the vet (Harry Connick, Jr.), Sawyer's mother (Ashley Judd), a doctor who creates prosthetics (Morgan Freeman) and others to save Winter and the animal hospital as the prosthetic doctor (after several miscues) creates a tail for the dolphin.  Kris Kristofferson is also in the movie as a grandfather and mentor.  I wish he would have sung something!

Part of the plot is the fact that the animal hospital is in danger of closing because of a lack of money.  It would be sold to a hotel developer.  As the movie unfolds Sawyer and others organize U Tube publicity to spark interest in school children and adults to save the marine hospital. 

To our surprise there were no evil characters in the movie though for a time it seems as if the hotel developer will succeed in closing the hospital.  In a heartwarming turn of events, he decides to support the marine hospital.

There is a spiritual side to the movie but it's a little thin.  I just wish that characters would be depicted in prayer, in church, or in consultation with spiritual mentors.  I'd like to think that it would make the movie even more realistic.

Take the time to see this movie.