Culture

Director: Francis Lawrence, (3/5).
Water for Elephants combines two fantasies – running away to the circus and a forbidden romance – offering itself as the ultimate escapist movie. The story: hopeful student Jacob Jancowski (Robert Pattinson) is about to finish veterinary school when his parents are both killed in a car accident, leaving him with nothing. He hops on a train, and as luck would have it, it turns out that he has stumbled into the famous Benzini Brothers’ travelling circus. After some initial antagonism, Jacob joins the motley crew as a circus-hand. He tells them of his love for animals and is appointed vet, shortly before the troupe acquires a new animal: an elephant named Rosie.

At the same time he becomes infatuated with the mysterious older “woman with the horses”, who unfortunately turns out to be Marlena (Reese Witherspoon), the wife of the intimidating circus owner, August (Christoph Waltz). August, despite taking a shine to Jacob (as does Marlena), has a streak of sadism and displays uncontrollable bursts of rage, at one point mauling Rosie with a bull hook until she is unable to stand up. Jacob and Marlena, bonded by their love of animals and mistrust of August, begin an affair, but worry that August, in his domination over the circus and his wife, is all-knowing.

The circus life into which Jacob is initiated is thrilling; depicted as freewheeling and wild, the circus folk run with Jacob over the tops of moving trains, drink and dance raucously with him, and teach him to tame the wild beasts. In this aspect, the fantasy is gripping. But to be truly fantastical, a story needs to have interesting leads, and unfortunately Jacob and Marlena just don’t cut it. Despite the actors’ tolerable performances and good looks (Pattinson, going for the dirty vagabond look, is relievingly much less sparkly than you’d expect), Jacob and Marlena are so nice they’re boring, and their romance is insipid.

Water for Elephants won’t affect you deeply, with the possible exception of the fear-inspiring August, who, played by the masterful Waltz, is chillingly evil and appealingly pitiful by turns. The film has moments of good fun though, picking up speed after the first hour for a circus extravaganza of a finale.