We Bought a Zoo

Directed by: Cameron Crowe

Memorable quotes:

Benjamin Mee: "You know what? Whatever is the laziest word of the 21th century, alright? I've had it with whatever. I don't want to hear it again in this century, ever again. Whatever is over.
Rosie: He says it all the time, he won't have anything left to say in this century."

Benjamin Mee: "She keep calling me to go hiking.
Duncan: Benjamin: Hike her."

Benjamin: "Hey Rosie, am I doing anything right?
Rosie: You are handsomer than the other dads. Lots of them don't have hair, so that's good.
Benjamin: Awesome. I'm gonna take bold off my list of things to worry about."

Benjamin: "I mean it's a...
Mr Stevens: It is.
Benjamin: It is what is is.
Mr Stevens: It is what it is. Sometimes you don't know what it is until you see what it is. You know, once you see what it is, then you can figure out it is what it is. Do you understand?
Benjamin: No, but we can move on. "

Benjamin: Great, I keep her home from school one day and she gets eaten.

Kelly Foster: "I'm 28, I never go out. I'm here everyday. My girlfriends, they text me, they're out living their lives, meeting guys names Brad, and I'm here shovelling shit, bear shit! I'm pathetic. I had to move back with my mother. No one gets paid Ben...jamin. We need somebody who can really take charge of this place or else we and these animals are gone.
Benjamin: So your question is?
Kelly: Why did you buy this place?
Benjamin: Why not?"

Benjamin: "It's about Rosie man. She's happy here.
Duncan: Rosie is seven. Just make her a zoo screensaver and she'll be just as happy!"

Rosie: "Did mama hurt a lot before she had to leave us?
Benjamin: Well, would you remember the night that we were tucking you in and you asked mommy that. No?
Rosie: No...
Benjamin: Well, she said that it looked worse than it felt."

Benjamin: A minute ago he was into paper airplanes, and now he is into portraits of decapitation and they're really good.

Benjamin: "I'm worried Lily is gonna hurt Dylan.
Kelly: It's gonna be the other way around.
Benjamin: How do you figure that?
Kelly: Because she is a farm girl Benjamin, and he is like this exotic creature from the city.
Benjamin: Exotic? My son?"


 Plot: Benjamin Mee is a  forty something widower, who is grieving while trying to take care the best he can of his two children. After his son is expelled from school, he decides it might just be an opportunity to move out and find a new place they could call home...

Review:

We bought a Zoo is such an adorable movie. Everyone I know who have seen it left the movie theater with a big smile, although some of us also shed a few tears.
This is definitely a family movie, and sometimes it just feels great to watch a film about ordinary people doing extraordinary things and just being nice to one another. 
I know that they've made a few changes from the actual real story this was based on, but I don't feel like it matters much. I think that they've nevertheless managed to convey what was the most important through this movie, so nevermind if they've changed the locations and added some of the characters such as Kelly played by Scarlett Johansson.
What I thought really did matter was the portrayal of this family who had to overcome grief and decided to seize the opportunity to start a completely new life. It guess it wasn't an easy decision to take, as sometimes it feels easier to remain in your safe place and keep up with your daily routine, even if it hurts when someone isn't a part of it anymore. I thought this was an incredible smart move and an incredibly brave too. What's more is that Benjamin Mee made sure his wife hadn't died for nothing, and used his time, effort and money to save animals, make sure a bunch of people would keep their jobs, and give his children the opportunity to live an amazing life. We bough a zoo certainly is an inspirational story, and I have to admit I even went back to the movie theater to watch it another time.
I also thought the casting had been well done. I really like Matt Damon, and it's also nice to see him age so well! He's done a great job and was absolutely believable as a father of two kids, which is a role I had never seen him play before. A few scenes he was in broke my heart. He was touching and I really enjoyed seeing him interact with the child actors.
Scarlett Johansson was also fairly good. She wasn't the focus of this movie, but she did had some great moments and great lines.
The only actress I wasn't sure about was Elle Fanning. I thought all she did was to smile during the entire movie, and she certainly has one big smile! Apart from that she didn't deliver any performances at all. It didn't feel like her acting was bad, but it felt as though she had barely any acting to do at all!
All in all, I'd definitely recommend this movie to anyone who wants a good time and a good cry, and I really hope things are still going well for the actual protagonists who were portrayed in this film.

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