Water for Elephants Directed by Francis Lawrence - Movie Review Example

Movie Evaluation: Water for Elephants Movie Overview After the death of his parents, Jacob Jankowski is left homeless and penniless. Various events lead Jacob to join the circus as a veterinary officer and consequently finds himself working under unstable Augustine who is his boss (IMDb). Due to the violent tendencies of Augustine, everyone is cautious around him and even his beautiful wife Marlena who is quiet is very careful around him. Despite the possessiveness of August, Jacob soon finds himself falling in love with Marlena.

The movie is drafted from the bestselling novel “water for elephants” by Sara Gruen (The New York Times). Cast The movie is directed by Francis Lawrence, produced by Andrew Tennenbaum, source material by Sara Gruen and screen play by Richard LaGravenese. The Main actors are Marlena (Reese Witherspoon), Jacob Jankowski (Robert Pattinson), August (Christoph Waltz) and Charlie (Paul Schneider). Evaluation From the onset, the movie gives an air of self satisfaction because of its source; a bestseller novel as the source material.

Unlike other movies that the industry and viewers have witnessed before that have viewer discretions especially due to language, sex and violence, this movie definitely qualifies to be a broad-based and popular entertainment for the whole family. However, the novel and the ingredients in the movie are very promising that the viewer has the feeling that it could have been better. Despite its uniqueness and richness of the story, there lacks a convincing romantic chemistry in the film and therefore, the emotional connection that one feels should be there cannot be found.

Being set at the back of a circus story which in most stories is an epic, majority of all generations being targeted by the movies can identify with. The costume designer should take much credit in the making of a costume that convincingly takes the movie back to the 1970s when circus was popular among the North Americans (Turan). By placing a love triangle deep into the heart of the film in a circus story, the film is able to bring that special aura and romance that remains relevant despite the passing of time.

Set against the background of depression in the United States that characterized those times, Jacob had hoped to become a good vet with a Cornell degree. Therefore, in the desperation of unsatisfied dreams, he hops into a circus that forms the skeleton of the film. Therefore, the movie is set against a credible background that especially the older generation all know too well about and especially the depression that comes with lack of job opportunities in the economy. The script is smart and therefore tightens the action in the original novel source.

Hence, the movie enriches the original narrative with some twists to the narrative that however reflect the contemporary times. From the story, it can be evaluated that the romanticism in the film depicts a self contained universe that has its own unique rules, rigid social hierarchy, and its own language. From shoveling animal dirt, Jacob’s gift of animal husbandry becomes his expertise (Turan). This in real life works as an inspiration to those who might be struggling economically in the face of the just ending economic depression as the economy recovers.

Overall, the addition of a beautiful love story in a rather reliable story makes the film a unique and richly blended piece of story. Works Cited IMDb. "Water for Elephants." IMDb 2011. Web. The New York Times. "Water for Elephants (2011)." The New York Times 25 April 2010. Print. Turan, Kenneth. "Movie review: Water for Elephants." Los Angeles Times 22 April 2011. Print.