Zoo (2007)

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

Nice effects though.

just watch it!

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

To my mind, Zoo isn't really a documentary. It's an art-opinion piece trying to make a point that peaceful people who aren't harming anyone and love their animals (?) should be left alone. Much of the cinematography is indeed beautiful, but many shots are too dark (in the lack-of-light sense) to appreciate, and most are lingered over far too long. Since the filmmakers use audio-only interviews over goofy scene reenactments to tell what story there is, it's hard to tell what's going on most of the time. Any actual facts are referred to obliquely rather than delineated. I wasn't looking for graphic details, but did hope to learn more about the truth of the situation. This film was little help in that regard, although I did learn a few things about the people involved. This mess does not a documentary make. Bottom line: Don't try to be Errol Morris unless you can pull it off. PS: Some folks think differently; Zoo was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance.

Upon getting hold of a copy of Zoo, my girlfriend asked me what it was about. I ummmed and aaahhh before informing her that it is in fact a documentary about a man who died from internal injuries, caused by having sex with a horse. That's putting it nicely. I may have even used the phrase 'bummed to death'. She then asked me why I would want to watch a film about such a thing. I couldn't reply. The fact is, since Zoo was released back in 2007, I had been dying to see it. I don't know what that says about me. Perhaps it's revealing my disturbing levels of curiosity about all things that shouldn't really be discussed. Anyway, I had the last laugh, as the film is genuinely very good.On a small farm in King County, Washington, groups of men would get together every now and then to escape their hectic lives and family. They would talk, drink, joke and play games together. They also had one thing in common - they were in love with horses, and enjoyed having sex with them. When a withdrawn character called Mr. Hands arrived at the farm, the men were curious. He seemed unsure and unattached. In 2005 he was rushed to the hospital, dying of internal injuries. He subsequent death caused a media storm and the investigation uncovered the farm and what was happening there. The state was forced to immediately pass laws against bestiality and the recording of the act.While it would be quite easy to make a joke of the situation, or to make a straight-laced documentary uncovering the seedy goings-on at the farm and the incident that later became known as 'the Enumclaw horse sex case', credit must go to director Robinson Devor for creating something entirely different. It was completely not what I expected. Zoo is a mysterious, dreamlike documentary that allows its real-life participants to give their point of view over slow-motion reconstructions of the incidents. It's a brave artistic move that never feels pretentious or meaningless.I can only describe the feeling of the film as a mixture between Errol Morris' The Thin Blue Line and Andrew Jarecki's Capturing The Friedmans. It had the slow-building, crime-oriented feel of the former, and the storyline that you just can't quite believe actually happened of the latter. It's a fine mix and works surprisingly well given the taboo subject matter.In regards to the subject matter, it is handled both sensitively and with an air of curiosity. It allows the participants on the farm to tell their story, and doesn't misrepresent them in a way to make the viewer feel disgusted. Not to say that I didn't feel that way. Hearing these men talk about having genuine feelings of love for the horses, and relating to them on a basic, animalistic level just made me pity them. Not to say that I wasn't fascinated by what they had to say.A strange, hypnotic film about a shocking and unbelievable incident. I urge people to see past what the film is about and allow themselves to be moved by this quite unique film.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

This film is pretty. That's about it. I was very eager to see it, hoping that these people had the guts to approach the subject. What I got instead was a story that thought it was trying to show the human side but instead flitted around, nearly dodged the story entirely, and subjected itself to a lot of justifications to soften the blow. It sold itself cheap, coming off more like an apology or attempt at begging tolerance than an honest piece of work. I could never get into work that tries that hard to lead the audience by the reins.I understand the topic is vilified by many, but it'd be nice to see a more honest piece of work showing pride and passion for their beliefs. What a shame to have to so much trouble for so little.

It's a story as old as the hills: A man breaks into a farm, masturbates a horse to arousal and inserts the horse's penis into his anus. Sufficiently pleasured by the animal, the man returns the horse to its stable and drives back home. Days later, the man dies due to internal bleeding, the horse's penis having ruptured vital internal organs. We later learn that the man could have saved his life by checking into a hospital, but of course he was too embarrassed to have done so. He died, alone in his home, having been humped to death by a horse.Despite its sensationalist subject matter, this is a rather boring documentary. Not wanting to seem exploitative, the film-makers back away from their own material, too timid to ask any truly interesting questions.Why, for example, did horses fascinate the man? What is the appeal of bestiality? Is there such a thing as horse penis envy? Why was the horse not jailed for manslaughter? Is it possible for an animal to consent to having sex with a human? Why did the police charge the man with "coercing an animal into sex"? How exactly do you coerce such a huge and powerful animal into sex? Either the horse wants to do it, or it doesn't. Doesn't anyone notice the irony of a horse mounting a human being? But no, this documentary doesn't delve into anything interesting. There is one great shot, however, of a horse being elevated above an operating table and then later operated upon by a group of masked doctors. With its surreal juxtaposition between hospital gowns, antiseptic tiles, sterile medical equipment and a giant levitating horse, the sequence recalls several scenes in David Cronenberg's "Dead Ringers".6/10 - I watched this film thinking it was Frederick Wiseman's famous documentary, also called "Zoo", which examines the lives of the men and women working within an inner city zoo. But nope, it's about a guy who has sex with a horse. Kinky.Worth one viewing.