Water for Elephants (2011)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

First, I should note that I've never read the novel on which Francis Lawrence's "Water for Elephants" is based. I had never heard of it until the movie got released. Now that I've seen it, I'm impressed. I interpreted it as a look at how a person tries to find his place after his initial goal fails, but also gets forced to do the right thing in desperate situations. Although Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson are the main characters, Christoph Waltz is the one who sticks out in my mind. His August is one vile person, the type who would draw the ire of any animal welfare organization. But I suspect that these things happen a lot in circuses. Barnum and Bailey recently closed after 146 years in business. Probably best, knowing how animals get treated; after all, they aren't meant to be our entertainment.It's not a masterpiece, but still a good look at how the characters seek to find a healthy relationship in a cruel setting. I'd like to read the book.

one of films who impress. for the ordinaries sparkles - costumes, recreation of the air of past, young actors and an animal who becomes axis of a story from the circus universe. for the joy of justice. and for a sweet, dramatic, impossible love story. but, more important, for the science to preserve the spirit of novel, recreate a world who becomes inspired mix of the childhood memories, cruel challenges of life and the meet who change everything. America in crisis has a seductive portrait in this film about a long travel to the happiness. sure, it is a good state to discover Robert Pattinson escaping from the cage of Twilight series and doing more than a decent job. but the star is Christoph Waltz who gives great nuances to his August. so, see it !

I love Christoph Waltz, I mean, I truly love him doing his craft. I loved him through all his German television shows that I used to endure, I loved him through the broken subtitled movies I used to watch in seven-minute increments on YouTube, I loved him through the horrible campy bit parts he used to get; the ones where I'd have to watch a whole movie to see him for 6 minutes. What I'm getting at, is: I loved him before he made it big in America in Quentin Tarantino's 2009 WWII re-imagination, Inglourious Basterds. That 2009 breakthrough was especially fun for me because I also love Quentin Tarantino, so the powers that be in cinema land really smiled upon me with that pairing. The moral of the story is that I see everything Christoph Waltz acts in, as frustratingly underwhelming as that may be, sometimes. In 2011, my love for all things Christoph brought me to Francis Lawrence's feature also starring Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson, Water for Elephants. In a prominent role for Christoph, playing the ringmaster in a traveling circus in 1931, Water for Elephants exposes the struggles of a young man who lost his parents in the midst of the Great Depression. Exposing how important a sense of belonging is to those who wonder the world alone, Water for Elephants is an expose in the aspects of the human psyche we often avoid. Jacob Jankowski (Robert Pattinson) has his life planned out. He is one final exam away from finishing his veterinary science degree at Cornell University, he is the object of affection from a beautifully smitten girl in his class, and he has dreams of grandeur to become a veterinarian like his father who immigrated to the United States and instilled in his son that your dreams can come true if you have enough sense to see them through. All of Jacob's perfectly thought out plans disintegrate when he finds himself homeless after a car accident claims the lives of both of his parents. Lost, with nowhere to go, Jacob hops on board a train traveling in the night. Unbeknownst to him, Jacob has climbed aboard a traveling circus train of the Benzini Bros. After meeting a few circus hands who help get him temporary work, Jacob is introduced to August (Christoph Waltz), the circus ringleader, to see if he can stay on employ permanently with the circus. After a tense meeting with August, when he realizes Jacob has an ivy league veterinary education, August names Jacob the circus vet. While checking in on the animals, Jacob meets Marlena (Reese Witherspoon) the beautiful horse-riding main attraction, and wife of August. Instantly smitten by her beauty, Marlena and Jacob find ways to spend more and more time together, which does not fly under August's radar. Marlena takes several beatings at the hands of August, which do not diminish when he sees she and Jacob spending so much time together. Jacob attempts to persuade Marlena to run away from the circus with him and start a life together, but can she leave the man that took her from the shop corner and brought her under the lights of the big top?I love a film told in flashback. Water for Elephants opens with a seasoned man visiting circus grounds disappointed to learn that he missed the show. The man then goes into the office while circus hands work to find a number for his caretaker and alert them that he is on the grounds. Meanwhile, the man goes on to describe his experiences of circus life, captivating the circus owner. I found this a great way to tell the story for this movie. There were loads of wonderful Christoph Waltz moments, but nothing tops that entrance! Seeing him in shadow only while his voice booms to the audience under the big top was a brilliant way to show how commanding and domineering he was in the film. You can see in Water for Elephants, however, his first film after Inglourious Basterds, his second American film, that he is already being type-casted, which is a true shame for the amazing versatile actor. Pattinson was much better than expected; having never seen him in any films, I wasn't sure what to expect. Witherspoon was alright, I never really care for her acting style, and it didn't help that I didn't buy her relationship with August; something about their pairing came off incredibly fake. Water for Elephants was a beautifully shot film with great images of animals all throughout, filled with a fantastic score and an Austrian actor that completely stole the show.

Water for Elephants was a great movie, better than the book in my opinion. It had much less sexual contact and portrayed the relationship between Jacob and Marlena very well. Having Jacob talk to the circus director and telling the story that way was very creative and a great change to the movie. It also focused on Rosie, which I believe the book didn't cover very much. It was in general a great movie with good changes from the book; however I believe the ending scenes were much better in the book. Jacob and Marlena jumping off the train together to attempt to live a better life, then Jacob sneaking back on the train was romantic, but strange in the story line. As Jacob and Marlena were not expressed deeply to be very romantic to each other as much as the book, a more romantic scene is out of place. Walter is also a more of a major character in the book, and is barely scene in the movie. Walter somehow turns from a disgruntled dwarf to Jacob's friend in less than a night with nothing to show for it. Other than those few complaints, Water for Elephants was a great movie and I recommend everyone to see it at least once.