Bestselling novels have finally reached a point where they’re adapted into films faster than just about any other medium, whether it’s fiction, non-fiction, or something from the Young Adult section. As has been proven, just because a novel cultivated a massive fanbase doesn’t mean its film legacy will follow suit. More often than not the film just doesn’t hold up to the novel, but is that even possible? Unless an author is absurdly verbose or the novel quite short, the chances of every little detail being worked into a film adaptation are slim. In fact, it’s just about guaranteed that something will get lost in translation, and that’s exactly what happened with Water for Elephants. The novel spends lots of time developing the relationships between a would-be veterinarian and the rest of the unique personalities working on a traveling circus. In the film, many important aspects of characterization got lost and instead of a respectable representation of the book on the big screen, we get merely a hollow shadow held aloft by the always enjoyable Christoph Waltz and a decent turn by Reese Witherspoon.
The past and future of Jacob vanish in an instant when his parents die in a car accident during his final exams to graduate from Cornell’s veterinarian medicine program. Having left the exam to go look after his parents, he never matriculates and thus never gets his degree, a problem further complicated by the revelation that his parents went into debt to pay for his education, and thus he hasn’t a cent to his name. He sets off down an uncertain path and hops aboard a train that just so happens to be the transportation for a traveling circus run by the severe and somewhat unstable ringmaster August (Waltz). He rules his circus sternly and operates according to a certain code, one which demands Jacob be thrown from the train—a decision rescinded when Jacob reveals his veterinary skills. Hired on as the circus’s vet, Jacob forms fast bonds with the odd collection of misfits and the beautiful star of the show, Marlena (Witherspoon), who also happens to be August’s wife. As they travel, Jacob forms a tight bond with an elephant the circus acquires by happenstance, as well as Marlena, eventually getting the two of them on the bad side of August who proves himself to be the most savage beast in the traveling menagerie.
It’s been said that a story is only as good as its villain, and if that’s true then Water for Elephants seems deceptively better than it is, because Waltz steals just about every scene he’s in (which seems to be a knack of his). His emotions turn on a dime, taking him from your best friend to your worst enemy without ever altering the tone of his voice. He’s used this skill in many roles, all of which were characters that had the freedom to be violent on a whim, and frankly it’s the only reason there’s a feeling of danger in the film’s final act. Without Waltz’s penchant for hiding rage just beneath the surface, the love affair of Marlena and Jacob wouldn’t feel quite as dangerous, because the cuckold would either be a cartoonishly angry sucker or an ignorant fool. Waltz is neither, and consequently makes the film work.
Reese Witherspoon also gives one of her better performances of late, playing Marlena as smart enough to know she’s in a bad situation, but without the confidence to ever sever the ties on her own. She needed help. Unfortunately, that’s where the film takes a bit of a hit as Robert Pattinson’s strong suit isn’t emoting. This may be his best showing yet, but he still just shuffles his way through the film with about three different facial expressions substituting for what should be an entire range. After all, his character is losing his parents, being threatened with death via a tumble from a speeding train, falling in love, fooling around with other circus performers, befriending a pachyderm, and slyly evading the suspicions of a jealous husband. Through the course of that, Pattinson never really offers up enough character to fill out Jacob, and so when he and Marlena hatch a plan, it’s hard to care about him as much as what his absence in the circus might mean for his elephant friend.
If you’re looking for an example for how the film fails at condensing all the little details of the book into a 100-minute experience, you need look no further than the scene of Rosie, the elephant, discovering she can move the stake that is supposed to keep her anchored to one spot. The scenes are amusing certainly, but lack enough weight on their own to the point that when Rosie uses that trick to a much more violent end later on, it feels less like a natural progression and more like a deliberate setup. By contrast, in the novel, the running gag of Rosie changing locations at her own discretion is given much more exploration and thus doesn’t feel like a device later on as much as a genuine escalation of her abilities.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The combo set includes the film on Blu-ray and as a digital copy. An audio commentary and profile pieces on Witherspoon and Pattinson make up the more basic extras, while pieces on the creation of the film’s moving circus and its travels are the two featurettes worth taking in.
"Water for Elephants" is on sale November 1, 2011 and is rated PG13. Drama, Romance. Directed by Francis Lawrence. Written by Richard LaGravanese (screenplay), Sara Gruen (novel). Starring Christoph Waltz, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson.
