The standout is without a doubt Jessica Chastain, sporting a refined Polish accent and an expressive face that brings much heart to an otherwise grim movie. The villain has been defeated and the main heroes have survived. By the end, everything falls into place and the audience cannot help but grin while reading the epilogue. The scenes that follow have a familiar air, from the almost-getting-caught moments to the rising tensions between husband and wife due to an unwanted intruder to the final confrontation. Soon after, Antonina and Jan start carrying out their secret scheme, trying to keep Nazi zoologist Lutz Heck, who has a special interest in Antonina, and the German troops at bay. All this effectively establishes the gloomy tone for the rest of the film. Niki Caro’s competent direction in these scenes makes for a series of intense sequences, accompanied with some grisly images of the animals’ deaths as violins mournfully harp in the background. However, all hell breaks loose once the bombardments start and tanks gradually fill the streets of the city. The initial scenes set the stage with grace and sweetness, presenting the everyday life of this rather unusual family. It is small in scope, but grand in its message.
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The movie is handsomely told through bleak, grayish tones, with suitably understated period costumes and minimalist production design. Though brutal at times, the film subtly presents a hopeful image of a dire situation. That said, The Zookeeper’s Wife is the untold story of Antonina Zabinski, a Polish woman whom with her husband, Jan, and young son, Ryszard, decides to shelter Jews in the facilities of their vacant zoo during the Nazi occupation of Warsaw. Holocaust movies are often tough to watch, be it for the imminent death scenes lurking around the corner or the constant violent, even exploitative, displays of injustice, torture, and overall inhumanity.
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