WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

Guest Review: Written by my wife.

I’m a Robert Pattinson Fan, so much so that I flew interstate for the weekend to attend the Australian Premiere of this film.  I waited in a Sydney CBD street for almost 14 hours to get a glimpse of the man. He signed my WFE book, I took a gazillion photos, then ran like the wind down the red carpet to make it inside to see Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson and the Director, Francis Lawrence introduce the film.

Jacob Jankowski is a 90-something year old man (Played by Hal Holbrook) who wanders out of his retirement village when he hears the Circus is in town. We then hear Jacob tell the story of his life to one of the Circus staff;  A story of Love, Loss, Life and above all else The Circus.

Jacob’s (Pattinson) life story is set in the early 1930’s, during prohibition, depression and generally tough times. Whilst sitting his Ivy League College Exams to become a Veterinarian (as his father before him), Jacob is told that his parents have died in a car crash. The bank keeps all the family’s assets to repay debts and Jacob is left with no home, no money and no family. He starts walking, ends up jumping on a passing train, a Circus Train and this is where the real story begins. 

August (Christoph Waltz) is the equally charming and disgusting owner of the “The Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth”, his wife Marlena (Reese Witherspoon) is his Star Attraction. Marlena is a picture of perfection as she rides the majestic horses and wows the crowds with her elegance, beauty and sex appeal. Enter Jacob Jankowski who after a rocky circus start, embraces the role as Circus Vet and thus becomes very close to August and Marlena. 

As was common in the 1930’s Circus scene, when one circus falls apart, another is just around the corner to acquire it’s talent at a bargain basement rate. It’s in this vain that we meet Rosie, a 9000 lb Polish Elephant who steals your heart the moment you meet her. Jacob feels a kinship with his animals and also with Marlena. August isn’t oblivious to their obvious attraction and this will spell the demise for the self proclaimed "Most Spectacular Show on Earth".

In the interest of full disclosure I have been upfront with my love for Pattinson, but up until now my love has been based more on his dashing good looks rather than his acting cred. All that changed in this film. He’s still smoking hot, but he’s so much more than that in WFE. When Rob (I can call him Rob, we’re that close...) was cast alongside Waltz and Witherspoon I was very worried, oh so very worried. I’ve seen all his movies and to his credit he is getting better and better in each one and WFE is absolutely no exception.  I felt like he had real charisma on screen, a real presence which I haven’t felt before.  He dons the American accent flawlessly and his chemistry with Witherspoon feels authentic. I also loved seeing him with Rosie (the elephant), it looks so natural, so real. I can’t wait for the Blu-ray release in the hope there will be some extra footage of their interactions. Rob still has a long way to go, but it's wonderful to see just how far he's come already.

Watching At the Movies last night with Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton, Margaret made the comment that we should thank Quentin Tarantino for introducing us to Christoph Waltz (cast in Inglourious Basterds). I couldn’t agree more. I adore Waltz, he has the uncanny ability to be totally charming but absolutely terrifying at the same time. He plays August brilliantly and even though he is an abusive, violent, selfish pig of a man, you can still see the reason why Marlena marries him in the first place. There are scenes in the film where August appears almost fragile or broken, and you can’t help but pity him. Then there are other times when you hope the elephant steps on his head, twice. Waltz was perfectly cast and I can’t wait to see so much more of him in the future. He is by far the stand out performer in this film.

One of my favourite films of all time is Man in the Moon, It’s Reese Witherspoon’s first movie. Made in 1991, I was 10 at the time and remember watching the movie after my mum recommended it. Since that day, Man in the Moon has become part of my soul. So I suppose you could say that Reese and I go way back, however skip to today - she is simply perfect in WFE. Reese did 5 months of “Circus School” and did all, except 1, of the tricks in the movie. Remember that when you see Reese on the elephant because it really will blow your mind. Her character, Marlena is a bit of a puzzle. She’s raised in foster care and marries August, at the ripe old age of about 17, when the circus comes into town. She does what she needs to survive and have a family, she never wants to live with strangers again. Marlena is strong but fragile at the same time. After some discussion with my husband about this, I'm not not sure whether or not I believe Marlena was in love with August, or whether she was in love with the life. Having a home, a family, and being a "Star Attraction" are so very important to her. Reese is beautiful as Marlena, she lights up the screen and you believe every word that comes out of her mouth. 

Water for Elephants will find an audience with men and woman alike. It’s a romance at its core, but it has so much charm that you can’t help but get caught up in the magic of it all. Women will see it with their girlfriends/mothers/daughters and men will see it with their wives/girlfriends and they might not admit it, but they will enjoy it. Forget that Robert Pattinson is from Twilight – leave all your preconceptions at the door, Water for Elephants deserves your full attention. 

In recent days WFE has been getting a lot of unwanted attention regarding the treatment of Rosie the elephant. Whist making the film, Rosie was never mistreated and there was always an 'animals advocate' on set, the production company has been very clear on this. However, recent information has come to light that says Rosie was abused and mistreated during training in 2003, and as such, certain animal rights groups are calling for a boycott of WFE. I think this is very unfair. If an actor is abused in childhood, should you never see their films? Should they never be allowed to work again? Such a notion is ridiculous. The people who abused the elephant in 2003 deserved to be punished, no one else.

Water For Elephants is based on the book of the same name by Sara Gruen. I didn’t want to read the book before watching the movie, I wanted to experience the story for the first time in the cinema. As such i am reading the book right now, and it’s beautiful. I love the old version of Jacob, he’s very witty and his story is heartbreaking. So far the movie is a carefully crafted adaptation and one of the better ones I have seen.

4.5 Stars