Review of Zookeeper starring Kevin James and Rosario Dawson.
If your neighborhood zoo is closed for some reason, and you need a substitute, your kids might enjoy spending a little time with Zookeeper. I don’t know that they’d love it – you certainly won’t, but it’s at least harmless family fun.
It’s a pretty simple plot – a little Doctor Doolittle and a lot Night At The Museum. Griffin(Kevin James) is a nice guy still trying to get over his proposal of marriage to his girlfriend Stephanie (Leslie Bibb) years earlier. She rejected him because he’s “just a zookeeper,” and she thinks he’s capable of so much more. She re-enters his life, and the animals he cares for want to help his friend win them back. Somehow they think that will make him a better zookeeper. So one night, they reveal to him that they can talk – then they teach him their ways so he can translate them into his real life.
Adam Sandler and his Happy Madison Production company decided they really wanted to make a kid’s movie, so they’ve done it (Director Frank Coraci is a Sandler movie veteran, Kevin James is now a Sandler buddy and Sandler himself provides a voice), but they may not know how to make one with any real depth. Credit where it’s due: you and your kids won’t walk out of there offended. Sandler’s known for some gross-out humor, but his crew shows restraint here. Maybe the worst we get is a pee-pee joke, but your kids have seen the dog pee, right?
All they really have, though, is a concept, and while it would be nice to lose yourself in a fantasy world of talking animals, you can’t do that during a bland movie. Instead, you have time to think about all of its flaws.
Why – after years of listening to him talk about a woman who hates that he was a zookeeper—would the animals want him back with her? Don’t they know that means he’d leave them?
Why does Griffinso easily accept the idea that animals can talk?
Why would another zookeeper ask Griffin, “Who are you talking to?” He’s a zookeeper! He’s talking to the animals! It’s his job! The question should be: “Did I hear another voice?”
And what’s wrong with being a zookeeper anyway? Stephanie is clearly a snob, but her aversion to Griffin’s profession is awfully forced. He seems like a guy who has his life together, he’s good at his job – heck, he’s even the lead zookeeper. But the movie decides he has to have a profession kids would love so they can rally behind him. Also forced: a love triangle that includes zoo veterinarian Rosario Dawson. The snob who rejected him or his fellow animal lover? Even the little kids in the audience will figure out who Griffindecides is right for him. Following that decision comes the most ridiculous version of the “Chase to Stop the True Love from LeavingTown” that’s standard in any romantic comedy – riding the back of a gorilla is faster than taking a car?
One can’t help but think the kids will be bored by the love triangle, especially the scenes with no animals in them. James is a likeable guy, but this role is too timid to carry a children’s movie. Someone more manic like a Jim Carrey or a Jack Black would have fit the brown suit better.
The animals are a little more entertaining, thanks to some clever dialogue. I enjoyed Sandler’s monkey and the grizzly bear brothers had their moments. Adults may enjoy hearing the voices of familiar stars including Sylvester Stallone, Cherand Nick Nolte.
But in the era of CGIand Pixar, there is no real excuse for poor special effects to make animals talk. It may seem quaint to simply have mouths moving on real animals, but it doesn’t look convincing enough after what we’ve seen in other movies. I never believed Stallone was the lion. I believed he recorded his dialogue, they pointed a camera at a lion and drew in a moving mouth.
Genre/s: Comedy
Release Date/s: July 8, 2011 (Showtimes & Tickets)
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Production Company: Hey Eddie, Happy Maddison Production, Broken Road
Official Site: Official Site for Zookeeper
CAST and CREW FOR Zookeeper
Starring: Kevin James, Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb, Ken Jeong, Donnie Wahlberg Jon Favreau, Joe Rogan, Nat Faxon, Steffiana De La Cruz, Nick Bakay. Features the voices of Cher, Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler, and Sylvester Stallone.
Directed By: Frank Coraci
Written By: Nick Bakay, Rock Reuben, Kevin James and Jay Scherick from the story by David Ronn and Jay Scherick
Produced By: Todd Garner, Jeff Sussman, Kevin James, Adam Sandler, Jack Giarraputo
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M.P.A.A. Rating: PG by the MPAA for SOME RUDE AND SUGGESTIVE HUMOR, AND LANGUAGE.