Water for Elephants is a 2011 drama film based on Sara Gruen's novel of the same name, directed by Francis Lawrence and starring Reese Witherspoon as Marlena Rosenbluth, Robert Pattinson as Jacob Jankowski, and Christoph Waltz as August Rosenbluth. Hal Holbrook will play the older Jacob Jankowski.
Other cast members include Mark Povinelli as Kinko/Walter, Jim Norton as Camel, Scott MacDonald as Blackie, James Frain as Rosie's caretaker, Ken Foree as Earl and Paul Schneider as Charlie O'Brien. The film opened to mixed reviews.
As a young man, Jacob Jankowski (Pattinson) was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the Great Depression, and for Jacob (Holbrook), now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie.
It was there he met Marlena, (Witherspoon) the beautiful equestrian star married to August (Waltz), the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. Here he also met Rosie, an untrainable elephant and the only hope for this third-rate traveling show.
On a budget of $40 million, filming began on May 20, 2010 in Los Angeles, Piru, Fillmore in California; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Kensington and Chickamauga in Georgia. The filming wrapped up on August 4, 2010. This is the second time Witherspoon and Pattinson have costarred together as they had filmed a deleted scene from 2004's Vanity Fair in which he was her estranged son. Reshoots for the film were scheduled for mid January, 2011.
“Water for Elephants” has received mostly lukewarm reviews. Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes reports that 50% of critics have given the film a negative review based on 81 reviews, with an average score of 6.2 out of 10. The critical consensus is that the characters lack chemistry but the landscape is engaging. Film Journal International said the movie has “one-dimensional characters and an unfulfilling storyline” and that some scenes made the reviewer “cringe.” Access Hollywood reviewer Scott Mantz, on the other hand, compared Water for Elephants to Titanic, “thanks to an engaging love story and strong performances.”
Cast:
Reese Witherspoon as Marlena Rosenbluth
Robert Pattinson as Jacob Jankowski
Christoph Waltz as August Rosenbluth
Tai as Rosie, the elephant
James Frain as Rosie's caretaker
Hal Holbrook as Older Jacob Jankowski
Paul Schneider as Charlie O'Brien
Ken Foree as Earl
Tim Guinee as Diamond Joe
Mark Povinelli as Kinko/Walter
Scott MacDonald as Blackie
Jim Norton as Camel
Richard Brake as Grady
Release date: April 22, 2011
Other cast members include Mark Povinelli as Kinko/Walter, Jim Norton as Camel, Scott MacDonald as Blackie, James Frain as Rosie's caretaker, Ken Foree as Earl and Paul Schneider as Charlie O'Brien. The film opened to mixed reviews.
As a young man, Jacob Jankowski (Pattinson) was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the Great Depression, and for Jacob (Holbrook), now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie.
It was there he met Marlena, (Witherspoon) the beautiful equestrian star married to August (Waltz), the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. Here he also met Rosie, an untrainable elephant and the only hope for this third-rate traveling show.
On a budget of $40 million, filming began on May 20, 2010 in Los Angeles, Piru, Fillmore in California; Chattanooga, Tennessee; Kensington and Chickamauga in Georgia. The filming wrapped up on August 4, 2010. This is the second time Witherspoon and Pattinson have costarred together as they had filmed a deleted scene from 2004's Vanity Fair in which he was her estranged son. Reshoots for the film were scheduled for mid January, 2011.
“Water for Elephants” has received mostly lukewarm reviews. Review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes reports that 50% of critics have given the film a negative review based on 81 reviews, with an average score of 6.2 out of 10. The critical consensus is that the characters lack chemistry but the landscape is engaging. Film Journal International said the movie has “one-dimensional characters and an unfulfilling storyline” and that some scenes made the reviewer “cringe.” Access Hollywood reviewer Scott Mantz, on the other hand, compared Water for Elephants to Titanic, “thanks to an engaging love story and strong performances.”
Cast:
Reese Witherspoon as Marlena Rosenbluth
Robert Pattinson as Jacob Jankowski
Christoph Waltz as August Rosenbluth
Tai as Rosie, the elephant
James Frain as Rosie's caretaker
Hal Holbrook as Older Jacob Jankowski
Paul Schneider as Charlie O'Brien
Ken Foree as Earl
Tim Guinee as Diamond Joe
Mark Povinelli as Kinko/Walter
Scott MacDonald as Blackie
Jim Norton as Camel
Richard Brake as Grady
Release date: April 22, 2011
