I was glad to see that Water For Elephants was showing on HBO because I knew
that it was a best selling novel and had received good reviews when it was released as a movie. Last night I learned why Water For Elephants was so popular. It stars Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz. Robert Pattinson plays Jacob Jankowski, a young man in the Depression who loses everything when his parents die in a car accident. Jacob leaves his veterinary studies at Cornell University and goes on the road. He jumps on the first freight train that goes by. Little does he know that this is the train of the Benzini Brothers Circus. The director and dictator of the circus, August, allows Jacob to stay because of his veterinary education, allowing him to care for the many animals in the circus. August turns out to be a charming, capricious sadist who is not afraid to kill people who disappoint him. The focus of the story is that Jacob falls in love with Malena, August's wife, and sparks begin to fly. I highly recommend this movie.