ZOO: A Charming Family Flick That’ll Leave You Wanting More

Colin McIvor’s Zoo is the true story of a group of kids who work together to save a baby elephant from being killed at a Belfast zoo. While the movie is certainly a crowd pleaser, it lacks a certain depth that you look for in a movie about Ireland, World War II, and cute animals.

Despite some flaws, it’s great to see an adventurous kids’ movie based in Ireland. And of course, it’s hard not to appreciate a story about a baby elephant and a kid that loves animals. There is a serious tone to the movie though, with it being set during the air raids in Belfast.

Great Characters, Talented Kids

Art Parkinson might be known best for playing Rickon Stark on Game of Thrones, but he holds his own as Zoo’s lead. His character, Tom, is a passionate and intelligent young boy who is determined to take care of baby elephant Buster while his father is away at war.

The friends that Tom makes along the way make the adventure even more fun. His friends Jane (Emily Flain) and Pete (Ian O’Reilly) are endearing and have their own stories making them well-rounded characters. Another thing to appreciate is the casting of James Stockdale as Pete’s disabled younger brother Mickey, adding diversity and an endearing subplot for Pete.

Things Left to Be Desired

The technical aspects of the film are all pretty standard. Basic cinematography, cliché, non-diegetic mood music, and unnecessary voiceover from Tom as an adult. In fact, the voiceover really takes away from the film even though it’s only at the end. The first thing they teach in screenwriting is to avoid voiceovers and someone blatantly ignored this advice.

McIvor isn’t a stranger to films with children as the target audience. He directed several episodes of the TV serious The Sparticle Mystery, a show where all the adults on the planet disappear. He also wrote and directed a short called Charlotte’s Red, about a 7-year-old who has a talent for painting while her father has a talent for stealing.

While McIvor is definitely a great writer and director, I think the story could have gone a little deeper. The story is emotional but could have been more so.  The young actors in this film are very talented, and they could have handled more. Not only could the actors have handled more, but the audience could have, too. This film is set during World War II, a terrifying time for Europe, why not show a deeper fear of war along with the love for animals?

There was one intense scene during one of the bombings, but you didn’t really feel worried for the characters (although maybe you should be?). The point is, there could have been a lot added that wasn’t there. It’s a sweet story with some incredibly talented kids, but there wasn’t enough of them! Not enough kids, not enough elephant love, and not enough Ireland.

Zoo: Give It a Try, See For Yourself

Zoo is a good movie for families and plenty of people will enjoy it. It’s light and easy without too much of the depressing themes that tend to go along with Ireland (they couldn’t seem to avoid alcoholism, as brief as it is in the movie). As long as you’re not going into it expecting to be as emotionally moved as you were when you watched Coco, you’ll like this movie just fine.

Have you seen Zoo? Tell us what you thought in the comments below!

Zoo was released in the US on June 8, 2018 and will be released in the UK on June 29, 2018. For all international release dates, see here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=56&v=uMhc0MNWdRU