I am a fan of WWII history - factual and flights of fancy. And I am an ardent animal lover. And I have found Jessica Chastain a satisfactory, often great! - cast member in movies in the past.
So what could go wrong? It's hard to pinpoint, and painful to have to say it, but this movie felt "icky" to watch. I felt as if my psyche had been violated in some way, even "poisoned," if that's not too strong of an analogy. Granted, I didn't "enjoy" Schindler's List, either! But at least it, and other holocaust-ish movies, felt as if they were presenting something useful. Maybe not healing, per se, but some quality of the human narrative that moved us in some way. They felt honest. This one just upset me, and creeped me out, without offering any of what I could call a redemptive quality.
If I may be permitted to say, "The Zookeeper's Wife" felt like a prime example of the cinematic criticism of "gratuitous." Gratuitous violence does not equal reality (yes, I know, horrifying violence was WWII's theme). And gratuitous depression and grim horrors do not equal pathos. At least for me.
I have no doubt that all the producers, the director, the actors, all are wonderful people in real life. I have no doubt they worked really, really hard on this. And while you may love it (some IMDb voters seem to have), know that at least one prime candidate for an appreciative audience member (me) found it awful, hurtful, and unclean.
So what could go wrong? It's hard to pinpoint, and painful to have to say it, but this movie felt "icky" to watch. I felt as if my psyche had been violated in some way, even "poisoned," if that's not too strong of an analogy. Granted, I didn't "enjoy" Schindler's List, either! But at least it, and other holocaust-ish movies, felt as if they were presenting something useful. Maybe not healing, per se, but some quality of the human narrative that moved us in some way. They felt honest. This one just upset me, and creeped me out, without offering any of what I could call a redemptive quality.
If I may be permitted to say, "The Zookeeper's Wife" felt like a prime example of the cinematic criticism of "gratuitous." Gratuitous violence does not equal reality (yes, I know, horrifying violence was WWII's theme). And gratuitous depression and grim horrors do not equal pathos. At least for me.
I have no doubt that all the producers, the director, the actors, all are wonderful people in real life. I have no doubt they worked really, really hard on this. And while you may love it (some IMDb voters seem to have), know that at least one prime candidate for an appreciative audience member (me) found it awful, hurtful, and unclean.