Movie Review: "We Bought a Zoo" Is A Bad Buy

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Parent Category: Film and the Arts

Category: Reviews

Published on Monday, 12 December 2011 11:37

Written by Lloyd Carroll

We Bought A Zoo
co-written/directed by Cameron Crowe
starring Matt Damon, Peter Riegert, Scarlett Johansson

Based on the true story of British journalist Benjamin Mee -- a journalist who always put himself on the front lines for a story and earned a well-deserved reputation for his fearlessness, We Bought A Zoo reflects his derring-do. One of his dreams was to open a zoo, and he did just that by taking over the dilapidated Dartmoor Zoo in Plymouth, England.

It's somewhat ironic that a film based on a true story has so many plot points that it just doesn’t feel authentic. Director/co-writer Cameron Crowe, who did such outstanding films as Fast Times At Ridgemont High, Jerry Maguire, and Almost Famous, has shifted the locale from Great Britain to Southern California.

Mee (Matt Damon) is a recent widower who is taking care of his two kids -- the rebellious teen Dylan (Colin Ford) and his overly precocious seven-year-old daughter, Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones).

Dylan, a talented but moody artist, has a tendency to get expelled from schools and draw paintings of decapitations and other gruesome images. Does Benjamin call in a mental health professional to meet with his son? Of course not!

Mee is having problems at work, where his editor Delbert McGinty (Peter Riegert) hasn’t run his pieces recently and rejects his latest proposal for an article. What does Benjamin do? He quits in a huff even though Delbert begs him not to. His boss graciously says that he’ll lay him off just so he can collect unemployment.

Despite having to take care of a family in a rough economy, Benjamin succombs to pride, bizarrely rejecting any compensation made out of pity.

With no job and a son who is expelled from school, Benjamin decides that what everyone needs is a change of scenery. Rosie sees a house that she loves and Benjamin decides that the place is perfect as well. The only problem is that in order to buy his desired abode, he has to also purchase the rundown Rosemoor Zoo that has been operated by the state of California ever since its previous owner died.

Despite having no experience taking care of animals, Benjamin gives it a go and puts a fortune into fixing up the zoo in the hopes of opening it in six months. He is helped by a skeptical but able staff led by head zookeeper Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson).

Of course Murphy’s Law kicks in and whatever can go wrong, it does. Solomon the Lion nearly breaks out of his cage; Buster the Bear does find a way out of his enclosure and nearly devours Benjamin; finally, the zoo’s main attraction, its beloved 17-year-old tiger, Spar, is lethargic and may have to be put to sleep. Just when it looks as if the ship has been righted, we are informed that San Diego County is hit with Biblical rains, which is highly unusual for any time of the year, let alone July.

We Bought A Zoo hopes to be a holiday family film but it is a rather dark movie where the topic of death is always hovering. The final scene, where Benjamin shows his kids the restaurant where he met his deceased wife, is particularly cloying.

Crowe has us believe that she comes back to life at the table where she and Benjamin met back in the 1990s and that his kids start talking to her. “Hi Mommy!” screams Rosie.

Despite its zooey narrative, We Bought A Zoo features strong performances from alpha Hollywood talent. Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson are terrific and do the best that they can with a flawed script. Thomas Haden Church, who takes on the role of Benjamin’s brother Duncan; JB Smoove, who plays a novice real estate agent; and John Michael Higgins, who portrays a fastidious zoo inspector, provide much needed comic relief.

The yeoman work of those who toil in zoos worldwide for little remuneration is nicely saluted. Unfortunately, the awful plot contrivances of We Bought A Zoo make you feel as if you’ve spent too much time in the elephant house when you leave the theater.

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