That circus picked me.

Water for Elephants

I recently read (and loved) Water for Elephants so I was anxious to see the movie but I had my reservations. Would it live up to the book? Was Reese too old to play Marlena? Why Rob Pattinson for Jacob? I found myself basically satisfied with Water for Elephants as a film adaptation to the book. There were some good changes and some pleasant surprises. Although the semi-cheesy script did give me some problems.

I still say Reese Witherspoon was a bit too old. Marlena is written younger and I think that works for the character. Though she and Rob Pattinson had good chemistry, she was fairly stiff. She looked kinda bored the whole time, like she wasn't fully committed to the role. Maybe she saw Marlena as low key but she just seemed bored.

Christophe Waltz was as great as I expected. Maniacal and charming, I loved him. He's so good at playing a bad guy and August is bad. Waltz definitely didn't bring a lot of sympathy to the role, unlike in the book. But again, I think that's the writing.

And then there's Rob Pattinson...who wasn't as bad as I thought he'd be. He actually captured Jacob's essence; sweet, melancholy, quiet, and gentle. He had a Kirsten Dunst Marie Antoinette thing going on; great with physicality, not so great with the words. It's pretty hard to deliver cheesy lines like, "You're a beautiful woman, you deserve a beautiful life," and he couldn't. I really wonder what an actor like Andrew Garfield would've been like in the role, but I'm ok with Rob. I could see Jacob shining through him.

I love how the movie developed Jacob and Marlena's relationship more. That was one of the few things I didn't like about the book, the love story didn't feel well developed. The movie definitely gave the love story room to grow and I could really see why Jacob and Marlena fell in love.

The soundtrack was stunning. Seemed very period but beautiful and romantic. James Newton Howard isn't one of my top five favorite composers but this score was stunning.

All the scene with Rosie the elephant were so well done. Her trainer is amazing and the camera loves her. She's so beautiful and moves so gracefully.

My main problems were the semi uninspiring acting and the script. There were Rob's cheesy lines, Reese saying the same dull thing over and over again to calm Christophe and the cheese factor continues.

Finally, I wish there would have been a little more focus on the circus itself and some of the other characters. Author Sara Gruen paints such a beautiful picture of the circus and its characters, I would've liked to have seen more. But the movie was already at 2 hours so some things have to go.

A solid B, maybe even a B+. It was probably the best adaptation you could get from the book but the dialogue certainly could've been better.

Gwyneth Paltrow in Sliding Doors

I love this gem of a movie and I don't care how obnoxious and out of touch with reality she is, I love Gwyneth. Here she's playing the same woman, in two different realities, with two different types of emotional baggage. She must distinguish between the women while keeping her essence. No easy task. She nails the British accent and succeeds with light comedy. Adore her always.

Netflix

Rabbit Hole-Wanted to see this.
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2-Going to Greece made me want to see this again.
Arthur-Netflix Instant. The original.