Movie Review….The Zookeeper’s Wife!
This movie had a release date of March 2017, so it has been in movie theaters for a while.
The Captain and I wanted to be sure to see it before it left the movie theaters… simply because we really enjoy seeing a movie on those large movie screens.
This movie is a poignant, true tale of survival that unfolded at the Warsaw Zoo during Germany’s invasion of Poland in the Second World War.
Based on Diane Ackerman’s book, the wartime drama pays tribute to the heroic Polish couple – Jan and Antonina Zabinski, Warsaw zookeeper and his wife.
The daring duo saved over three hundred Jews by sheltering them in the basement of their dilapidated zoo right under the noses of the Nazis, who not only bombed the zoo, but killed many of the animals. The Germans were at the zoo daily, not leaving the grounds until midnight which allowed the people to come out of hiding if just for a little while.
The above pic is of the women and children hiding in the basement of the zoo. The zookeeper’s wife is asking them to be as quiet as possible while they draw or paint to entertain themselves.
The Nazis also actually decided to stay on site to care for munitions, etc stored there, which made the hiding of men, women and children even more daring by the zoo keepers.
The Zookeeper’s Wife is an incredible real life story.
This couple and their son, loved their animals with such human kindness that it couldn’t help but spill over to the homeless Jews. The Germans were everywhere in Poland and were removing people from their homes and possessions and setting up Ghettos with little food or shelter. The people were then herded onto trains for prison camps and much worse.
The zookeeper and his wife hid many people in their basement in animal cages and tunnels until the people could be trucked to safety. Of course, they risked exposure many times which would mean immediate death to the zookeeper, his wife and child as well as the Jewish people they hid.
This movie is a reminder of the l love for mankind and a hope which allows us to rise beyond the darkness and hatred that surround us at any given time.
Jessica Chastain is credible as the zookeepers wife and the acting is very good by all actors and actresses.
The animals are of course amazing to watch.
The Movie’s epilogue explained that after the war, the zoo was rebuilt and is open to this day as a museum and a zoo in the city of Warsaw.
A must see movie.
Please comment, I'd love to hear from you.