Zoo is a 2017 British and Irish historical war family drama film directed and written by Colin McIvor. The film, based on a true story, stars Dame Penelope Wilton, Art Parkinson, Toby Jones, Ian O'Reilly, Ian McElhinney, Amy Huberman, and Damian O'Hare. As the Belfast Blitz ravages the city, a lonely widow, and an awkward teenager with misfit friends take an elephant named Buster from the city zoo, and hide it in the widow's terraced house back yard.
| Zoo | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Colin McIvor |
| Written by | Colin McIvor |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Damien Elliott |
| Edited by |
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| Music by | Mark Thomas |
Production companies | Piccadilly Pictures Northern Ireland Screen Yellowmoon Metro International Ripple World Pictures Wee Buns Films |
| Distributed by | Entertainment One (UK/IRL) Samuel Goldwyn Films (USA) |
Release dates |
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Running time | 97 minutes[1] |
| Countries | United Kingdom Republic of Ireland |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $231,719[2] |
Cast
- Art Parkinson as Tom Hall[3]
- Penelope Wilton as Denise Austin[3]
- Toby Jones as Security Guard Charlie
- Ian McElhinney as Mr Shawcross
- Amy Huberman as Emily Hall
- Ian O'Reilly as Pete
- Emily Flain as Jane Berry
- James Stockdale as Mickey
- Stephen Hagan as Jake McClune
- Glen Nee as Vernon
- Damian O'Hare as George Hall
- Shane McCaffrey as Officer Burland
Production
Principal photography on the film began in September 2016 in Belfast.[4] The film is loosely based on the story of Denise Weston Austin, Belfast Zoo's 'Elephant Angel'.[5]
Reception
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 88%, based on 17 reviews, and an average rating of 7.2/10.[6]
