Yes, I am back and this time for good (I hope). And, yes you read the title right.
That's exactly what came to my mind after watching 'We Bought a Zoo'. Starring Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson, this film (based on a true story) is one that everyone should watch, especially animal lovers. I for one, have always been an animal lover (specifically lions) and this movie as the name suggests, spends substantial amount of time showcasing animals and it's just beautiful beyond words.
The story is pretty simple. A single father, Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon) raising two kids after the death of his beloved wife just a few months back, decides to buy a zoo as a way of 'moving on' and pretty much because his 5-year old daughter, Rosie adores the place. His 14-year old son, Dylan (Colin Ford, who looked ridiculously like Matt Damon in his younger days) though, like any other teenager, feels frustrated being forced to move out of his home and away from his friends.
Now, the best part of the movie is the emotional scenes between the father and son and also, the occasional conversations between Matt Damon and one of the tigers (reminds me of my dog). The quarrels in the beginning and the slow yet a little dramatic type of situations which eventually leads to the understanding and stronger relationship between the father and son were commendable.
There is a particular scene in which Dylan overhears his father telling his fellow zoo keeper, Kelly that Dylan has the same eye and expressions like his late wife and that's why he always tries to avoid looking at Dylan's eyes. Following this, Dylan angrily expresses that he is unhappy and rebellious because the father spends more time with the Rosie and that he hates him. This turns out to a huge quarrel which ends with both of them shouting at each other, 'Help me, damn it!'. And as cliche as it sounds, both the father and son later on end up becoming closer and strengthen their bond.
The scene that made me decide that I am going to love this movie was the beautiful shot of the lion. I am a huge lion lover (don't try figuring out why) and any movie with a lion in it would make my experience watching the movie a few notches better. So, if you love animals make sure you catch this movie as they have quite a number of animals right from Grizzly bear, tiger, lion, just name any that you can find in a zoo!
Besides the emotional relationship of the father and son, the second half also focuses on how Benjamin, his kids and the zoo keepers struggle to re-open the zoo and keep it going.Of course, there's a small track of romance between Benjamin and Kelly (Scarlett Johansson) but I wasn't really bothered to be honest.
As far as performance goes, Matt Damon and the kids managed to make an impact.Overall, the movie moves a little slowly but those who appreciate genuine story telling and have a thing for wild animals should definitely make it a point to watch this film.
That's it for the time being, and let me just say that it really makes me feel good to be back blogging :)