We Bought a Zoo

When Benjamin Mee loses his wife to illness he relocates his two children and takes on the challenge by buying a zoo!

Hardened journalist Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon), loses his wife to illness and after several run ins with his teenage son's school, he decides to take the plunge and move the family out of the city. While searching for the perfect home, they stumble upon a disused zoo, which Mee decides is the perfect way to find himself and try to move on with his life. The problem is, that he knows absolutely nothing about live animal management and also no idea how to handle the zoo keepers who come with the property.

With money running out, Mee needs to make some tough professional and personal decisions as he struggles to keep his family from falling apart and desperately works towards passing the inspection a week before the zoo is meant to re-open. As he comes to terms with his grief, he starts influencing the lives of others and enriches his own to find love in the most unlikely of places...

Matt Damon returns to the talent we have all missed since the days of "Good Will Hunting" and the "Rainmaker", giving one of the best performances of his career as "Benjamin Mee". His grief is real, his emotions raw and touching and his interaction with all of those around him is genuine and gripping. This is the Damon that we all wished would come back after the likes of "The Green Zone" and once again proves that this genius of an actor is best at home in a more serious role.

Scarlett Johansson takes on the role of "Kelly Foster" adding yet another example that she is a fine actress, that should stop wasting her time in the likes of "The Avengers" if she wishes to be taken seriously for the talent that she truly is. She delivers a truly classy performance in the role of a tomboy zoo keeper, and really impresses in this film. I really do hope for more serious roles from this talented New Yorker to finally proves she has what it takes to take her career to the next level.

Thomas Haden Church is superb as the older brother "Duncan Mee", always bringing some lightness to the story, which would be rather depressing without his input, but he brings a delightful softness to this story of loss, keeping the script going with his seasoned aplomb. Patrick Fugit, who will be best known to audiences for his superb performance in "Almost Famous", gives another top showing as the now very grown up "Robyn Jones", let us hope that this will be his return to main stream cinema!

Young Colin Ford, bursts onto the big screen in this one, with his powerful portrayal of "Dylan Mee", giving a performance well beyond his 14 years. His troubled character is central to the entire film and his subdued emotion after losing his mother is awe inspiring. He is one of the true stars of this piece and hopefully this will catapult him to the level at which his talent belongs.

By far the brightest star in this film is also the youngest, Maggie Elizabeth Jones, playing the role of "Rosie Mee" to follow close in the footsteps of her role in "Footloose". At seven years of age, this actress, with the face of an angel and the eyes that will melt your heart, has to be one of the most exciting talents to emerge since the rise and rise of Dakota Fanning. Her character is deep and emotive, while still possessing loads of innocence and and the child like quality which for too long has been missing in films. She is a truly superb actress and can only get better as the years go on. I am excited to see her next film and hope she lives up to the potential shown in this one.

Ironically it is the younger sister of Dakota Fanning, Elle, who also shows great talent in this one as the farm girl "Lily Miska", following her role in "Super 8" and again brings a lot of confidence that she can only get better with each film.

This is a truly special movie, it is heart breaking in places, funny, but also inspiring, and the fact that it is based on a true story, makes this film even more amazing. You will laugh, and you may well cry, but you will walk from the cinema, knowing you have seen something awesome!

8/10