Water for Elephants - 8 stars out of 10

Water for Elephants - 8 stars out of 10

"Water for Elephants" is a beautiful film.  The upsetting moments outnumber the happy ones, but it makes for some incredible drama.  This period piece explores the dark side of circus life through a wonderful narrative flashback told by Hal Holbrook.  At first, I gave this film so much credit for its love story developing at a realistic pace.  Instead of love at first sight, one character has lust at first sight but avoids due to circumstances.  Unfortunately, that spark never catches fire and the love story seems less significant than it should be.  This film is all about the villain.  Christoph Waltz is absolutely breathtaking as he makes every move with a poker face... until he snaps.  His aggression is frightening as he fills each monologue with rage.  Reese Witherspoon has one of her better performances but Robert Pattinson didn't bring much emotion to this performance.  He did well compared to "Twlight" but that's not saying much.  The draw of this film is definitely its unique story and impressive interactions with animals by Witherspoon and Waltz.  The best part is that you know that there is going to be some disaster in the end and you can feel the storm brewing, but you have no clue what the disaster will be entail until tragedy strikes.  After the dust settles, the film has the right ending and a cute conclusion.  The chemistry between the lead characters could have been better, but "Water for Elephants" is full of excellent drama and is worth watching for its villain that will leave you uneasy long after the movie has ended.