We Bought A Zoo

A theme rampant throughout movies this year is the death or incapacitation of a parent. Usually the "wrong one" died. In We Bought A Zoo Benjamin Mee's (Matt Damon) wife passed away and his children seem to be dealing with it quite well. Except for his son's acting out. Dylan Mee (Colin Ford) is expelled from his school. Life seems to be dumping on the Mee family. Benjamin decides it's time for a change and ends up purchasing a house with a rundown zoo attached to it. Instead of writing about the adventures as he had done for most of his life, he finally chooses to live the adventure and renovate the old zoo.

The story sells itself in my opinion. Who wouldn't want to live with exotic animals and on a zoo? It's like living on a farm, but much more exciting! It was a very fun story to watch unfold. And following Benjamin who had never done anything with animals in his life, we got to learn some ins and outs of how to treat the animals. Much like human babies/children you have to talk to the animals like they are adults.

Matt Damon shines in an abnormal performance for him. He's most well-known for being Jason Bourne and a co-writer of Good Will Hunting, but here he shows his softer side. Whether it's dealing with family matters or growing closer to the animals Matt Damon gives a performance with a lot of heart. His daughter, played by Maggie Elizabeth Jones, is adorable. She adds a lot to the movie based solely on her cuteness. Benjamin's teenage son, Dylan, adds the teenage angst to the movie and does a splendid job with it. And of course Scarlett Johansson as zookeeper Kelly was outstanding!

I really enjoyed the music. From the original score pieces to the inclusion of Bon Iver's Holocene every part of the music fit the mood. Sometimes it did overshadow what was going on in the story and almost felt like the music was pleading with us to feel what was happening. Instead of just adding to the emotion.

Overall this was a great family/feel good film of the year! Teaching you to live your adventures and not just wait for them to happen. I'll leave you with this quote from the movie: "If you had to choose between people and animals. Really quick. Who would you pick?"

7/10