DVD review: Thanks to Matt Damon’s acting skills and Scarlet Johansson’s brave transformation, We Bought A Zoo boasts more cred than youâd expect.
Matt Damon gives us his best Tom Hanks impression as a cuddly widower who gives his troubled young family a fresh start by buying them a rundown zoo. As you do.
Based on the fascinating true story of former DIY columnist Benjamin Mee, who bought a ramshackle menagerie in Dartmoor (here transplanted from Devon to a sun-glowing California), itâs warm, itâs fuzzy and you could, frankly, write its fish-out-of-water story arc with one paw tied behind your back. Think a slightly sexed-up version of ITVâs Wild At Heart complete with Scarlett Johansson as Meeâs love interest.
Yet this animal-themed family comedy boasts more cred than youâd expect, thanks to director Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous, Jerry Maguire), who ensures that at no point does Damon start mugging to I Like Big Butts accompanied by sunglasses-wearing bears before whoops-a-daisying straight into a pile of animal dung. Instead, the script has a proper go at being a successfully sincere story of grief and father-son bonding, less aimed at children than their dads.
That Damon is a rather cracking actor also means the tear-jerking bits are delivered with genuine humanity. And even sexpot Johansson bravely attempts âmousyâ as the zookeeper, though her sultry pout still hints at a gal less likely to muck out a tiger than sprawl across one.
VIDEO: We Bought A Zoo trailer
