Water for Elephants (2011)

Set in the 1930s, a former veterinary student takes a job in a travelling circus and falls in love with the ringmaster's wife.

Director:

Francis Lawrence

Writers:

Richard LaGravenese (screenplay), Sara Gruen (novel)

Stars:

Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz

3 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Reese Witherspoon	...	Marlena
Robert Pattinson	...	Jacob
Christoph Waltz	...	August
Paul Schneider	...	Charlie
Jim Norton	...	Camel
Hal Holbrook	...	Old Jacob
Mark Povinelli	...	Kinko / Walter
Richard Brake	...	Grady
Stephen Monroe Taylor	...	Wade
Ken Foree	...	Earl
Scott MacDonald	...	Blackie
James Frain	...	Rosie's Caretaker
Sam Anderson	...	Mr. Hyde
John Aylward	...	Mr. Erwin
Brad Greenquist	...	Mr. Robinson

Storyline

After his parents' death, Jacob Jankowski is left penniless and homeless. Events lead him to joining the circus as their vet, working under their unstable boss August whose violent tendencies give everyone reason to be cautious around him, including his beautiful and quiet wife Marlena, whom August is very possessive of and who Jacob finds himself soon falling in love with.

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Plot Keywords:

animal abuse | circus | elephant | ringmaster | train | 

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Taglines:

Life is the most spectacular show on earth.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for moments of intense violence and sexual content

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a deleted scene of Vanity Fair (2004), Reese Witherspoon played Robert Pattinson's mother. In this movie, they play lovers.

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Goofs

The blueish-grayish tights Reese Witherspoon wears are clearly made of a fabric containing nylon. Natural fibers (cotton, wool, silk...) would not result in the even, semi-opaque aspect with no wrinkles in the knee and foot area. Nylon was not invented before the late 30ies, so the tights are an anachronism.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Russ: [in the rain] Uh, Excuse me sir. Can we help you? Can we help you with something?
Old Jacob: Did I miss the Spec?
Charlie: Uh, yeah, I'm afraid so. The show was this afternoon.
Old Jacob: Oh.
Charlie: Did you come with the folks from Green Haven? Why don't we get out of the rain, and we'll call them for you.
Old Jacob: No, no! I came on my own.
Russ: It's okay. We're gonna call the home. We're gonna have them come pick you up.
Old Jacob: I'm telling you, I didn't come with the home! Why don't you take those rings out of your head, and maybe you won't be ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

In 'The producers wish to thank' section of the credits, the Circus World Museum is listed as being in Barbaroo, WI. The actual town is Baraboo, WI.

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Connections

Featured in 2011 MTV Movie Awards (2011)

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Soundtracks

Taps
Written by Dick Stephen Walter
Courtesy APM

User Reviews

Pleasantly surprised by it. For a movie set in the 1900s circus world, it does hold and show the magic of circus on screen as it is beautifully shot and told.

I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. Without being trite and redundant, it explores timeless and universal themes such as finding one's destiny and freedom, life choices, love, and jealousy, put in an interesting setting, that is the circus world -- the early 1900s when the US prohibition and depression were taking place -- which is nicely recreated on screen (by production designer Jack Fisk who's mostly known for his work with Terence Malick and David Lynch). Based on Sara Gruen's novel, this very original story is beautifully told, uses classical film-making techniques -- its camera moves, staging, lighting, pacing, usage of 'live' animals, stunts and special effects -- and well acted -- Robert Pattison comes across as a decent lead actor and not just a pretty face; Reese Witherspoon, very convincing as the star circus girl, doing some of her own stunts; however Christoph Waltz's performance stands out the most as he maintains the dynamic among all the main characters and fuels the drama. It's nice and refreshing to see a classically-made-and-looking film coming out of Hollywood.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English Polish

Release Date:

22 April 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Water for Elephants

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$38,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,842,353, 24 April 2011

Gross USA:

$58,709,717

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$117,094,902

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox 2000 Pictures, 3 Arts Entertainment, Flashpoint Entertainment

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS

Color:

Color Black and White (home movie sequence)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1