nickmesafilms

(2012-05-02 02:05:05)

Zookeeper (2011) - Talking Animals at the Zoo! Duh!

Kevin James stars in a new family comedy, which involves once again,talking animals. To be more specific, "Zookeeper" tells the story ofKevin James as a gifted zoo-keeper who is reunited with hisex-girlfriend after their 5-year break-up, and the talking zoo animalshelp him find a way to get the girl. Okay, was I the only one whothought that this kind of plot would be both generic and pretentious?What I mean is, this movie is way too much for the adults, that eventhe kids won't understand on how weird it is. First off, I'm startingto get a little bit tired of the same talking animal movie over andover again. Stop trying to make copies of "Dr. Dolittle"! I'm a KevinJames fan, but I can honestly say that it hurts me to watch him actthat bad in a movie like this, since "Paul Blart: Mall Cop". In thismovie, he can't handle good improvisation or enjoyment, but he'ssometimes laughable. The writing is super clichГѓВ©, and the movie justcontains little heart. By the way, there's like plenty of brief PG-13moments that didn't help the movie be a family movie. The casting isjust plain complicated, and Kevin does not make chemistry with eitherRosario Dawson or Lesile Bibb! What an overachiever! But the animaleffects, and voice talent, is pretty impressive, but I like I said,it's getting old. From the voice talents of Adam Sandler, Cher,Sylvester Stallone, and Nick Nolte (i don't know why), they try showinggood talent, but they are just showing comic humiliation. But sometimesthere are funny moments, even though I have only laughed like a fewtimes. "Zookeeper" may be incredible for the kids to watch, but not forthe adults that waste their money on a movie like this, so their kidscan watch it, without them noticing that it's somewhat crap! This movieis sometimes enjoying, but it sort of fails on the point system. I justhope that Kevin James finds a funnier project in the years to come. Iwouldn't say that this movie was the worst piece of crap of this or anyother year. I would honestly say that this movie made me think at thevery end, "OK...but no". "Zookeeper", in my review, "too childish andpredictable, but a little bit enjoying".

Van Roberts

(2012-05-01 11:23:35)

"Zookeeper" Is No Keeper!

Incongruity is the basis for the best comedy. Consider any clown. Aclown has big ears, an enormous nose, voluminous pants, and elongatedfeet. Clowns exaggerate their physical appearance for laughs. Not onlymay the star be a clown with outlandish features, like either BusterKeaton or Charles Chaplin, but the narrative may also provide anelement of incongruity. For example, the fish-out-of-water comedycontains characters struggling to fit into the puzzle of an unknownenvironment. They may be working at a new job. They may have to dealwith unfamiliar people. These new friends may use another language andcherish strange customs with which our hero lacks familiarity.Consequently, the hero ends up behaving like a buffoon because he isout-of-place. "Waterboy" director Frank Coraci's new featherweight comic misfire"Zookeeper" relies on incongruity for most of its few funny moments.More often than not, the slapstick takes a backseat to a tale whichswirls bromance with romance. When he isn't bonding with a depressedgorilla, Kevin James is wooing two attractive heart-breakers: RosarioDawson and Lesley Bibb. One is right for him, but the other is deadwrong. The trouble is that our hero wouldn't recognize the right womaneven if he were looking her in the face so he becomes infatuated withthe wrong one. Imagine what would happen if you combined "Night at theMuseum" with "Dr. Doolittle" and you'll have a good idea what to expectout of "Zookeeper." The big surprise—the only surprise--is that theanimals break their vow of silence and speak their piece when our herothinks about giving up his zoo job. Several major stars, including AdamSandler, Sylvester Stallone, Cher, Jon Favreau, Nick Nolte, and FaizonLove, furnish the voices for these real-life animals. Unfortunately, these animals generate little charisma, and they aren'tvery interesting as characters. They constitute stereotypes on paradewith nothing to distinguish them aside from the celebrity's voice-over.Nevertheless, they do provide a support group for our loser hero so hecan discover his one true love. Remember incongruity? A comedy withanimals advising a human how to conduct a romantic relationshipencapsulates incongruity. Some of those comedic incongruities and ourhero's idiocy may make you question the film's PG rating. Otherwise,"Zookeeper" qualifies as an affable but anemic Kevin James comedy aboutone of his typical nice-guy protagonists who finds himself romanticallychallenged at the game of love. Neither the former "King of Queens" TVstar nor his female co-stars conjure up any chemistry. As one of theproducers, James makes moments for his own brand of dumb physicalslapstick shenanigans. No, "Zookeeper" isn't nearly as hilarious as"Paul Blart, Mall Cop." You can count the laughs on one hand and havefingers left over, unless you are between ages five and eight.Our sympathetic hero works at Boston's Franklin Park Zoo. The animalsadore him. He adores the animals. Trouble is that our big lug of a herohas become infatuated with a gorgeous gal who works as a fashion model.Stephanie (Leslie Bibb of "Law Abiding Citizen") likes GriffinConstantine Keyes (Kevin James of "Grown-Ups"), but the shallowsupermodel doesn't love the big lug. The apple of our hero's eye isseeking status conferral for the sake of status conferral. "Zookeeper"opens promisingly as Griffin and Stephanie are riding together on onehorse along a deserted stretch of beach. When they spot a bottle in thesand, they dismount to check it out. Stephanie removes the note whichturns out to be Griffin's proposal, and he presents her with a ring.Stephanie turns Griffin down because he is a lowly zookeeper. As thetwo are riding away, a Mariachi band appears and serenades them.Moments later, fireworks erupt and scintillate the sky. Griffin feelslike an idiot, and Stephanie is just plain embarrassed. Five yearselapse and Griffin's brother is about to tie the knot with his ownmarriage when Stephanie appears and shows interest in Griffin. WhenGriffin considers quitting his job at the zoo to sell cars for hisbrother, the animals speak out and coach him in the art of seduction.The loquacious capuchin monkey voiced by Adam Sandler suggests that ourhero throw his poop at his favorite girl. The lion voiced by SylvesterStallone recommends that he cut his girl out of the herd. stresses theimportance of urinating as a part of the courtship. You can see wherethis is going. Eventually, the animals suggest that he take a date ofhis own to intrigue Stephanie. Who could be more ideal as a date thanhis co-worker, Kate (Rosario Dawson of "Kids"), goes out with him andit doesn't take long for our hero to realize that he has been chasingthe wrong lady.The filmmakers do an adequate job of making the animals look asrealistic as possible even when they are conversing with each other. Ofcourse, nobody but Griffin knows that this menagerie can squawk andsquabble. The animal that comes closest to making an impression is abrooding gorilla (voiced by Nick Nolte) named Bernie who has beenunjustly framed for attacking another zookeeper. Shane (Donnie Wahlbergof "Saw 2") made up the incident with malice aforethought. As a result,Bernie has been ostracized to a pit and doesn't enjoy the view that hehad in his previous enclosure. Eventually, Griffin takes him to taskfor it. What should have been the best scene occurs when Griffin takesBernie to T.G.I. Friday's Restaurant. He convinces Bernie to act likethey have attended a costume party. Nothing really hilarious happens.Later, James's best moment comes when he upstages Stephanie and herabrasive boyfriend (Joe Rogan of "The Fear Factor") at the wedding withan airborne dance number with Rosario Dawson that suddenly takes a turnfor the worst. Altogether, "Zookeeper" is no keeper.

baccaruda1970

(2012-04-30 18:49:42)

An absolutely incredible movie, pejoratively.

My 5-year old daughter wanted to go to the drive-in. To my horror, thisKevin James movie was playing. I asked if she'd rather cover daddy withhoney and unleash a few thousand fire ants on me. No deal. Had I hadany idea how absolutely awful this movie was, I would have keptnegotiating.Right from the get-go, the story is so unengaging that a blank screenwould have been preferable to the inanity that was displayed on it. Mydaughter tuned out after about 10 minutes and found the complimentaryrefrigerator magnet provided by the theatre more interesting.Nevertheless, we were all captive at this point and rather than stareat the speedometer for an hour I decided to stare at the colorfulmoving pictures in front of me.Bad choice. There was not a single scene that evoked any sort ofemotion. If there was an attempt at humor I missed it. The only thingthat could be construed as remotely humorous was the fact that thewriters (again) thought that this fat blob of idiocy (Kevin James)would have not one, but multiple beautiful women compete for him. Iused the time to imagine the demographic to which this movie wouldappeal. Anyone with a frontal lobe or more than two functional senseswould immediately be excluded. During one particular scene wheresomething funny was supposed to have happened, I think I heard anorangutan a few cars away from us let out a guffaw, no doubt droolingsome of his chaw onto his beer-belly stretched, bacon-stained, DaleEarnhardt t-shirt. I drew a mental image of the guy in my head andchuckled to myself, so I guess I can't say the movie was entirelyhumorless.In summary, I can't believe anyone had so little pride in themselves asto allow their name to be listed in the credits. Had I taken part andsomeone said to me "Didn't I see your name listed in the credits for"Zookeeper?" I'd say "Uh, no, but I was listed as a sexual predator ona neighborhood watchlist - that's what you're likely thinking of."

(2012-04-30 09:50:14)

dvd

This review is from: Zookeeper (DVD) It was a good movie, but not as good as I had hoped. There were parts I thought were nonsense. It was funny in parts, though.

leecjaster

(2012-04-30 02:46:45)

Zookeeper Cages Itself

Kevin James isn't without talent. His years spent on The King of Queenswere entertaining, and for a certain demographic, provided exactly whatthe doctor ordered. Translating to the big screen, James had amemorable performance in Hitch, while seeming to pull enough likabilityand charm out of roles in movies such as The Dilemma and Paul Blart:Mall Cop.The latter, Paul Blart, was a monster hit, winning the box office inits opening weekend with $32 Million, despite being barely watchable.Zookeeper follows in this same tradition, with James doing his best toact within a poorly directed, poorly executed, lackluster effort thatdisappoints for both kids and adults.Kevin James plays Griffin, a zookeeper who excels at his position.Though he loves his work, a failed proposal to Stephanie (Leslie Bibb)in the opening sequence, causes Griffin to consistently wonder what hislife would be like with the girl he wants, instead of the job he loves.When Stephanie comes back into his life five years later, Griffin isdetermined to get Stephanie back, despite the consequences of changinghimself, the life he loves, and the job he was born to do.Leslie Bibb puts a lot of her comedic chops to work in a role with nomeat on the bone. Her Stephanie is a one note song, but Bibb manages tomake her seem as if he she has motivations that are somewhat sincere,if utterly wrong for Griffin. Despite Bibb's best efforts, the writingnever lets her character escape past her cheap plot device: to giveGriffin a catharsis that he doesn't have to change who he is to findlove.Where will he find that love? In fellow co-worker Kate (Rosario Dawson)of course. As Kate, a vet who works with Griffin, Dawson also bringsloads of personality and charisma to a character that is about asinteresting as a dissertation on Guam's current economic import/exportclimate (no offense to anyone in Guam, or the import/export game forthat matter).Gauging Zookeeper is best done by relating it to its peers. Dr.Dolittle, which carries much more similarities than the talking animalaspect, was a much more concise and well constructed effort thanZookeeper ever has a chance of becoming. While the animals in Dr.Dolittle are able to provide more than canned laughter for adults,their action provided visual stimulus to keep the kids happy throughoutthe runtime. Dr. Dolittle also lets the animals do most of the physicalcomedy, which proves to be the most effective method to reach kids (andadults for that matter).Another production of similar value is Night at the Museum (which Ipersonally hated). At least Night at the Museum had the decency to getinto the meat of the action within a few minutes. Part of the realissue with Zookeeper is how long it takes to actually get to theanimals talking. Then, once they do, they don't do much else excepttalk. Then, when they talk, most of the humor is above the kids, andembarrassingly devoid of anything adults will find of value. The dialogas bland and pointless as it gets. For example, Adam Sandler plays the monkey who essentially screams,"Throw poop at her!" for minutes at a time. Other animals don't providemuch else, except for horrible dating advice, which proves to be theshtick for the middle act. While James is able to get something out ofthese gags, even his physical comedy can't save the bits from being dryand without a point or reason. Zookeeper doesn't use the crux of theentire movie-- the animals talking -- to actually further the plot oradvance a character, proving to be one of the cardinal sins it commits.When Zookeeper finally wraps up the first grade reading level of a plot(honestly, Curious George books feels like a convoluted thrillercompared to Zookeeper), there's really no point to have gone on thejourney. Zookeeper is a sloppy and apathetic effort in every aspect,including cinematography, costume design, set design, and, oh yea,plot, humor, and message. Overall: For the adult in the audience, Zookeeper will provide a fewgrins, interlaced with moments of disengagement, irritation, scoffing,and finally sleep induced drooling. For kids, Zookeeper takes nearlythirty minutes to get the animals talking, and once they do, they don'tdo anything but attempt to entertain the adults.Despite concerted efforts from Kevin James, Rosario Dawson, and LeslieBibb, Zookeeper cages itself from the outset.

neighborlee

(2012-04-29 15:09:53)

This is great family fun + loads of laughs for everyone

This is a family friendly movie that deserves to be seen, for its goodacting from its great cast of actors, and ahem, the 'animal kingdom' .Comedy is a plus here and we get it in spades from the very openingscene which sets the scene for the rest of the movie as it takes us fora 'ride' into laughter.The CG in this movie depicted by the adorable animals, is first rateand helps set the immersive mood.The poignant story moves the viewer from Zoo elation, to zoo care, andall the way back again as respect and admiration for our zany butadorable protagonist; all this encased in bright clever humor withstyle and depth, which makes you really feel for the characters anddraws you into the plot.If you like to laugh and who doesn't, - and enjoy decent family fun,then this is a winner.

intelearts

(2012-04-28 14:16:37)

445th Review: As bad and possibly worse than everyone is saying

I'm basing this review on my kids' opinion of Zookeeper not mine - theydid not enjoy it all - they found it unfunny, boring, and didn't enjoyit all - it is all style over content.The main fault lies with an exceptionally awful script - the animalsbicker rather than banter - the comedy is physical but lacks timing -it's all pratfalls and goofy looks - and that may work on a 20 minutesitcom but it just looks sad on a big screen.More tellingly the special effects (making the animals talk) justaren't ready for this amount of detailing - it doesn't yet feel or lookright.All in all, a very unfunny mess, that my children just didn't enjoy -and they're easily pleased. That this cost $80 million is just notright - it will do well on planes and on the film channels as it istotally inoffensive - but it doesn't deserve too one iota...

(2012-04-28 01:59:01)

Fun movie

This review is from: Zookeeper [HD] (Amazon Instant Video) If you like Kevin James and Adam Sandler like I do, you will love this movie! Make sure to watch it in HD so the animation pops.

steve_ford53

(2012-04-27 20:17:06)

Don't Feed The Animals

Kevin James plays Griffin Keyes, an average guy in an average job. Hehas a kind heart and an above average ability to relate to the animalsin his care as the zookeeper of The Franklin Park Zoo in Boston.The film opens with Griffin breaking up with his long time girlfriendStephanie (Leslie Bibb). He weathers the disappointment and we fastforward 5 years where Griffin has now become the head zookeeper. At acelebration of his brother's upcoming wedding, Griffin spots Stephanieand his old feelings for her bubble to the surface. Lost and confusedGriffin's animal buddies come to his rescue by 1 - letting him in onthe secret that animals can communicate with humans (in English noless) and 2 - teaching him how to win the female of his species (advicethat may be better left as that - advice) Some physical humor and notso funny scenes and lines fill out the movie for the long 104 minutes.Rosario Dawson plays Kate, the obvious new love interest for Griffin.Unless you're between the ages of 8 and 12 leave this one unseen - Idon't even think it is worth the matinГѓВ©e price. Maybe catch it sometime when it has been "formatted to fit this screen" and "shortened tofit in the time allotted".

(2012-04-27 10:45:57)

Fast delivery!!

This review is from: Zookeeper (DVD) This is a great movie. I really enjoyed it I had been looking for it in stored and couldn't find it. Thanks Amazon!!!

chase-valleau

(2012-04-27 04:20:32)

Pretty funny, but a little familiar

I usually try to stay away from movies in which the animal talks,however seeing this is extremely different. As most movies go where theanimal talks the movie ends up being pretty dumb. Zookeeper wasactually pretty funny, the animals have their own personalities thrownin with the people that voice them. One that stands out in my eyes isAdam Sandler voicing the monkey, which happened to be the funniestanimal in the film. The story is very familiar and ends up being verypredictable but any movie these days are hardly original anymore.As other reviews say it is a family movie and tends to aim for the kidsentertainment, but there is still some things for the adults. KevinJames plays his usual physically challenged hero and the rest of thecast did their part,even Joe Rogan who played an over jealous exboyfriend who is trying to be better than everybody he sees. Overall itwas an entertaining movie and I highly recommend that people should seeit.

Alise_shenle

(2012-04-26 15:47:30)

Surprisingly good

This movie looks to be a clichГѓВ©, dumb, rom com thing, but it is not.Griffin (cool name!) is an overweight but friendly guy, and obviously ahot blonde who's taller than him would not like him. However, hepretends to be someone else and she likes him because he does what shewants. Well obviously if Griffin was a girl and Stephanie was a guythis movie would not work at all. All the animals are much nicer thanhumans and they care more about Griffin than Griffin's friends. Thisjust goes to show how nice animals are. I like all the interactionsbetween animals and Griffin, and it is surprisingly heartwarming. Themovie was also funny in an endearing way, and there are no crude jokes.

nickmesafilms

(2012-04-26 06:38:24)

Zookeeper (2011) - Talking Animals at the Zoo! Duh!

Kevin James stars in a new family comedy, which involves once again,talking animals. To be more specific, "Zookeeper" tells the story ofKevin James as a gifted zoo-keeper who is reunited with hisex-girlfriend after their 5-year break-up, and the talking zoo animalshelp him find a way to get the girl. Okay, was I the only one whothought that this kind of plot would be both generic and pretentious?What I mean is, this movie is way too much for the adults, that eventhe kids won't understand on how weird it is. First off, I'm startingto get a little bit tired of the same talking animal movie over andover again. Stop trying to make copies of "Dr. Dolittle"! I'm a KevinJames fan, but I can honestly say that it hurts me to watch him actthat bad in a movie like this, since "Paul Blart: Mall Cop". In thismovie, he can't handle good improvisation or enjoyment, but he'ssometimes laughable. The writing is super clichГѓВ©, and the movie justcontains little heart. By the way, there's like plenty of brief PG-13moments that didn't help the movie be a family movie. The casting isjust plain complicated, and Kevin does not make chemistry with eitherRosario Dawson or Lesile Bibb! What an loser! But the animal effects,and voice talent, is pretty impressive, but I like I said, it's gettingold. From the voice talents of Adam Sandler, Cher, Sylvester Stallone,and Nick Nolte (I don't know why), they try showing good talent, butthey are just showing comic humiliation. But sometimes there are funnymoments, even though I have only laughed like a few times. "Zookeeper"may be incredible for the kids to watch, but not for the adults thatwaste their money on a movie like this, so their kids can watch it,without them noticing that it's somewhat crap! This movie is sometimesenjoying, but it sort of fails on the point system. I just hope thatKevin James finds a funnier project in the years to come. I wouldn'tsay that this movie was the worst piece of crap of this or any otheryear. I would honestly say that this movie made me think at the veryend, "OK...but no". "Zookeeper", in my review, "too childish andpredictable, but a little bit enjoying".

(2012-04-25 15:40:15)

In every zoo, there is poop...

I love Kevin James. I think that he is hilarious. I knew walking in that `Zookeeper' had the poor reviews that usually indicate a real stinker, especially in this genre, but I always consider Kevin James a presence that can and usually does make even a terrible film worth watching at least once.Yeah, not so much for this one.Honestly, `Zookeeper' may be the worst film I've seen in a very long time. There is very little funny here, in fact possibly nothing at all. I think the ONLY time I even cracked a smile was during the wedding scene, and half of that was out of sheer awkwardness (but it was semi-humorous at that). Overall, this film is a gigantic mess; a mix of wasted talent and uninspired regurgitation of potty humor that never hits where it intends. The story is that of an oaph of a man; Griffin. He is a large bodied, simple living zookeeper that is undeniably sweet natured and so, somehow, a girl as hot and self-centered as Leslie Bibb is interested in dating him, only to reveal that his profession is too much for her to handle and so she turns his marriage proposal down. Years later he's still dwelling in misery over it all. He complains about his loneliness to his animal friends at the zoo and so when they see an opportunity to get Griffin and his long lost romance back together, they take action. Soon they have Griffin roaring and walking with his package extended and peeing in potted plants and basically making a total fool of himself and yet, magically, it starts to work. But, in changing himself he begins to regret his decisions and, well, you'll guess from the pretty early on who he's going to wind up with anyways; but that's the nature of the beast.Sadly, this talking animal flick has nothing to offer. The animals are the worst part of the film. I remember when Eddie Murphy did `Doctor Doolittle'. Honestly, it was pretty clever and while some of the gags were predictable they were effective. This is such a polar opposite. The animals are crude and unfunny, and their interactions and staged comedic dialog is awkward and far too lowbrow for its own good. The voice work, especially Sandler's, is obnoxious and cringe-worthy. The `message' aspect of the film is poorly executed (the mean caretaker side of things was an afterthought entirely) and certain sequences are just too ridiculous (TGIF) that it makes this whole experience a complete and total waste.I still love you Kevin; I just advise you to steer clear of Adam Sandler.

(2012-04-25 08:56:43)

Best Comedy Movie!!!

This review is from: Zookeeper (DVD) I love Kevin James and that I think it is way better then Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Kevin James did an amazing job in the movie and the talking animals are so adorable. I went to see this with my mom and sister for a nice birthday gift for my mom. Absolutely started laughing through the whole movie. I wanted to buy this movie when it came out but I wanted to wait until the movie went on sale. I will be watching this movie over and over again.

gamefire10

(2012-04-24 20:13:59)

Terrible

One wonders if the writers were smoking something funny when they wrotethis movie. I went to see it at my local dollar theater with somefamily the kid next to me clapped every time he though some humor wasjust brilliant which by the way I really didn't laugh at all for themost part and really whenever I did it was either because they stuck alittle innuendo in the movie or I was just laughing at the stupidity ofthe film. Also there were some scenes that I felt were completelyunnecessary particularly the peeing scene and the scene in which KevinJames's character behaved like a gorilla. Now I can respect the factthat this is a film that you load a bunch or kids in the car and headoff to see but being a teenager I did not enjoy this film or its godawful comedy.

champ1964

(2012-04-23 18:51:23)

Great Fun Movie, Animation of the animals was first class.

The movie starts off a bit average. Once the Animals start talking, Thefun begins and never lets you down. Small kids wont get most of thestory but young adults and older will love the fun. My 68 year oldmother slept through half of Transformers, and Cars 2 but never noddedonce during this one. Real life situations and emotion are usedcleverly to connect you to the characters. Chemistry between charactersis excellent. I think the scene where the Gorilla gets to go to TGIFridays is my favorite. The bears are my second favorites, going on ateach other. Watching the King of the Jungle make and break his ownrules are typical male who thinks he is in control when all along weknow who is really boss, The Female of course. You will also enjoy thequality of the Animation of the Animal CGI. It looks Real, you willbelieve they are talking. It takes night at the museum quality to thenext level.Entertaining and Funny. If you love animals, and other Adam SandlerMovies,You will love this one. Its entertainment and a fun at a levelfor all to enjoy. JC

Brent Armour

(2012-04-23 10:26:42)

The Zookeeper

I never really liked all of the other Nutty Professor movies, althoughI had a black boyfriend at the time so I kind of had to pretend tothink Eddie Murphy was funny. Nowadays I'm allowed to acknowledge thetruth of the matter. That talking to animals is a f**king scaryconcept. This is why the dog whisperer whispers. You whisper whenthings are scary. Not to mention the fact that they recast the nuttyprofessor with a white actor. I mean, come on, how racist can you get?If the original nutty professor had been white and they'd replaced himwith a black actor, white people would be so p*ssed. SRSLY.......Read the rest of this review @ http://skipnappan.com

(2012-04-22 21:17:25)

Laugh out loud funny

This review is from: Zookeeper (Amazon Instant Video) After being hounded by my 8-year old son, I reluctantly rented this movie and we watched together. HIllarious! He and I laughed throughout the entire movie. I did not expect to like it, but I did. We recognized the voice of the gorilla as having been the voice of the bear in the movie "Over the Hedge". However - the monkey stole the show.

(2012-04-22 13:55:57)

Funniest movie in years!

Great movie! My 5 and 8 year old kids and my parents in their 70's all loved this movie. We could not stop laughing and my kids love to quote some things the animals said. I don't know how this movie got some bad reviews from critics!