Water for Elephants

Recently our family ordered "Water for Elephants" (PG-13) on Netflix. I have not read the book, but I keep reading about its success in Publishers Weekly. We like Reese Witherspoon, and I looked forward to seeing her tame an elephant. Robert Pattinson ("Twilight") was also a draw, though my daughter sides with the werewolves and he's a vampire, so she was biased against him. Still, she was willing to suspend her prejudice for a family night of movie-watching.

After we viewed this film, we all sat stunned. And we unanimously agreed that it should have received an "R" rating for "extreme intensity." It contains scenes of dead parents, and violence to humans and animals, not to mention making the audience root for adultery. While the visuals don't always show the actual pummeling, the filmmakers engage the imagination enough to make it awful. At one point when we got hit with a sudden surprise, my daughter turned to me and said she had almost passed out from the fright. This is a kid who usually scoffs when I warn her that a film might have scary scenes.

The chemistry between the actors was a bit off. But many of the costumes and props were gorgeous. It's an interesting story. But our girl said, "I'm warning all my friends!"

I'm not saying "don't see it." But don't let the tame-sounding name fool you. Water for Elephants is no frolic with circus animals.