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Griffin Keyes (Kevin James) is the perfect employee. In addition to being the favorite of all the animals at the Franklin Park Zoo, he's professional, courteous and well-liked by his co-workers. His dedication was only compounded when, five years earlier, he was dumped by his fiancée mid-proposal. But when his fiancée (Leslie Bibb) comes back into his life at his brother's engagement party, his career soon feels like an albatross around his neck.

Fearing the loss of their favorite zookeeper, the animals (voiced by Sylvester Stallone, Nick Nolte, Cher and others) intervene. They reveal the fact that they can speak and always could and then proceed to offer Griffin whatever help they can in winning back his former girlfriend. The attempts and advice vary in detail but what it all amounts to is a slapstick tsunami. It can enhance a storyline when used correctly but the use of it in this film is meant to replace one. It makes for a lot of laughs, but not a lot of originality. Basically, if you've seen the commercial, you've seen the movie. The kids will enjoy it, you might too, but you'd like it just as much if you waited to rent the DVD.

Kevin James ("The Dilemma") is in his element in "Zookeeper" portraying a very familiar character and is even more likable than before. Therefore, Director Frank Coraci ("Click") centers the film around Smith's slapstick comedy to salvage a poorly written script by Jay Scherick and David Ronn ("Norbit"). Horid scriptwriting commences as James's character Griffin Keyes proposes and rejected by his girl friend Stephanie (Leslie Bob, "Iron Man 2") solely on the basis that he was a zookeeper. Five years later, he is more dedicated than ever to the zoo animals, but is still trying to get over her. He has a new woman in his life named Kate (Rosario Dawson, "Unstoppable"), an animal doctor at the zoo, but is too infatuated with his past to read the signs. Meanwhile, Griffin is trying to connect with the zoo's Gorilla Bernie, but is having no luck. Stephanie then reenters his life looking to change Griffin once again. Griffin is determined to do anything to win her back. However, she is in a complicated relationship with a man named Gale (Comedian Joe Rogan) causing Griffin to have to compete for Stephanie's attention. He has no idea where to start until the animals at the zoo give him advice after breaking their biggest rule of not talking to humans. With a little added help from Kate he gets very close to changing his personality for good, but realizes in the end that he is meant for bigger and better things. Ken Jeong ("The Hangover: Part II") and Donnie Wahlberg (CBS's "Blue Bloods") also star as zookeeper in this film.

James has the clear stand out performance, but is strongly supported by an all-star comedic voice cast including Nick Nolte (Bernie the Gorilla), Adam Sandler (Donald the Monkey), Cher (Janet the Lioness), Sylvester Stallone (Joe the Lion) Judd Apatow (Barry the Elephant), Jon Favreau (Jerome the Bear) and Faizon Love (Bruce the Bear). Each animal is personified entertainment in their own way; however, the pair of bears conjure the most laughs. Kids will enjoy the childish predictable plot while older viewers will only be interested in the unlikely friendship that forms between Griffin and Bernie the Gorilla creating a hint of sentiment in the film.

With two of the worst scriptwriters in Hollywood responsible for its screenplay it is not a surprise that after the exposition of the film there isn't any reason to pay attention to the story. Henceforth, the conclusion is inevitably predictable, but Director Coraci evidently wanted to telegraph it even more. Leslie Bob's poor acting and portrayal of Stephanie as a horrible human being make it completely obvious that Griffin will never be with her. The biggest indicator of mediocrity comes in the form of "The Hangover" and "Community" favorite Ken Jeong as he skates through the movie on the track to pointlessness.

First "Mall Cop", now "Zookeeper" brings up the question of what odd profession James will tackle next. What ever it is James will do a solid job, lets just hope horrid writers aren't following him around in his next kids story adventure.

Some basic background about me and this movie: I honestly did not want to see this movie. I walked out of Eddie Murphy's Dr. Doolittle years ago, and thought this would be about the same. I'm also not a big Kevin James fan. Then, my Niece (who is in her 30's) told me she took her three young children (all under the age of seven) to see this movie a few days ago. She told me that the kids seemed to basically like the movie, but that she "loved it"... finding it an over-all fun and fast-paced-humor movie. Despite my serious doubts, I went today with a friend. Look... this is not a top ten comedy of all time movie. However, I left having the same feelings about it as my Niece (which surprised me very much.) The bottom line for me: Really loved getting to see and hear so many fantastic movie stars! Cher! Adam Sandler! Don Rickles! Well... there are tons of stars in this movie. And... what a great treat to have about two hours with good natured humor, back to back jokes and humor that gives you lots of giggles - but not a crack-you-up laugh-till-you-cry movie. Not meant to get an Academy Award, but it made me smile and feel good about going to the movies again (at age 42.) Look, this movie was worth the $8 to see in a theater. Really glad I went to see it. I'm a bit shocked to read to many bad reviews, and I really didn't want to see this movie. Lot's of memorable lines. And, there were a few heart-warming moments, too.

If you are about to ask me what possessed me in seeing Zookeeper, my answer would be curiosity. At first, I wasn't sure whether I wanted to see Zookeeper. The cast in general didn't appeal to me, apart from Nick Nolte and Rosario Dawson, and the trailer in the cinema when I went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 had me cringing.

When I eventually dragged myself to see Zookeeper I was overall very unimpressed. Is it the worst movie of the year? Not quite, that would be either Big Momma 3, River of Darkness or Spy Kids 4. But it is low on my "films I saw in 2011" list.

I know Zookeeper is a family movie, I get that. But in my book, just because it's a family movie, doesn't automatically mean it's a good movie. Just for the record, I love family movies, some of my favourites are family movies, such as Disney, Pixar, movies like The Wizard of Oz, The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, ET, Black Beauty and The Black Stallion. Zookeeper just isn't my idea of a good family movie that's all.

I love family movies that touch you and reach out to the child within you, and also ones that appeal to a wide audience. Of course Zookeeper isn't that type of movie, but family movies can also entertain. I admit I raised a smile once or twice, mainly because of Bernie the Gorilla, and the movie didn't make me cringe as much as its trailer did, but overall Zookeeper just didn't entertain me.

Firstly, the writing is pretty much a mess. Not only is the script poorly written and a vast majority of the gags predictable and cringe worthy, but to me the humour would go over the heads of most kids and adults would find it childish.

The storyline is also incredibly predictable, and while some of the final act felt rushed a lot of it because of the humour not working felt dull. Not only that, it is very unoriginal, not always a problem, but seriously just how many times have we had the Dr Doolittle/talking animals idea? I did like some of the scenery and the animals do look great. The editing however could've been much tighter. The music is forgettable and doesn't always fit with the mood, and the direction is plodding and unfocused.

I do wish there was better news about the acting, but sadly no. I am not a fan of Kevin James, though I wasn't going to let that spoil the movie experience. However because his character so clichéd and material so weak, James tries too hard and overdoes it, badly. Rosario Dawson is pretty much wasted in a thankless role.

The animals are in a way more interesting than the humans, they look fine and their material somewhat funnier. Voice work is more problematic, some do decently but some grate fast. Adam Sandler and Maya Rudolph are incredibly irritating, while Sylvester Stallone sounds bored. Cher tries her best but her character is not among the most interesting. The best, and the only one I really did like, was Nick Nolte as Bernie.

Overall, messy and doesn't work in my opinion. 2/10 Bethany Cox

So maybe you hated Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Maybe you're sick of Kevin James in The King of Queens. Maybe you saw the trailer and thought, "Night at the Museum rip-off!" right after you thought, "This is a joke, right?" I will admit that I held all of these accusations against Zookeeper when I entered the theater, but one thing I've learned is that preemptive decisions to not see a comedy simply because you think you have a grudge against it is BAD BAD BAD. I can understand if people can't stand Kevin James's frenetic humor IF YOU WATCHED IT, but over 400 votes of "1 star" a week before the movie is even released shows some shameful attitudes among IMDb voters. Purposeful down-voting is never justified, and is especially a disservice to Zookeeper, which actually turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

Roger Ebert put it best when he said: "Look, a great movie this is not. A pleasant summer entertainment it is." The moments that make an awful comedy awful are the ones when you feel like burying your face in your hands and wishing you never saw a second of this movie. You can all think of those times, I'm sure. Personally, Zookeeper NEVER gave me one of those moments. The plot was a breath of innocent fresh air and managed to keep me interested in the movie. The romantic tensions in Paul Blart: Mall Cop were ridiculously exaggerated, but in Zookeeper were quite low-key. The same goes for Kevin James's boyish, frenetic acting; James has an inherent likability about him that really carries the weight of the film. Be it puppets, animation, or real animal movement, the zoo animals were impressive as well and sported some convincing lip-dialogue sync that you wouldn't expect to find in a movie like this. With a varied cast that will keep you guessing at who voices who, the animals are the second great half of the show. This is a family film aimed at innocent, happy-go-lucky moviegoers and you know it - so if you're looking at a pleasant and light time at the theater, Zookeeper is the one to check out this weekend. But if you want the typical Hollywood explosions, then grab three extra dollars and head down to see Transformers 3 in 3D instead.

Hidden in the concrete jungle is New York Zoo with Griffin Keyes (Kevin James), its zoo-keeper, the heart of the facility. Meanwhile - unbeknownst to the outside world - the zoo is inhabited by talking giraffes, elephants, monkeys, lions and the like. When Keyes former girlfriend Stephanie (Leslie Bibb) threatens to throw him into a depression relapse the animals decide to make a coming out and assist their zoo-keeper with advice in the matters of the heart.

Overly obscene and borderline disgusting littered with senseless jokes spurted out by gibberish animals, "Zookeeper" fails to deliver in one key aspect: making you laugh. Albeit Leslie Bibb and Rosario Dawson do add some flair to the proceedings with their ueber-stereotypical one dimensional characters James lacks enough comedic flair to pull off the lone hero role, while crude animals with moronic lines hardly help his case. Foreseeably James manages to get his girl with the use of animal advice, but the same won't help him draw in any audience.

I went into Zookepper with my family not expecting much, as i knew it was a kid's movie and nothing special, but the movie was a failure, even as a family film.

my 3 kids, aged 7, 4 and 3 actually got bored and started to fidget and talk in the theatre out of boredom. as for me, i could not stand the movie at all, there was nothing interesting about it at all.

A few weeks back we also watched Mr Popper's Penguins, which was also a kid's movie, but it was much much better than this drivel. at least the story had flow and Jim Carrey is a much better actor than Kevin James will ever be.

the Zookeepr's story had no flow to it, it was like a bunch of supposedly funny scenes mixed together incoherently rather than a whole connected film. nothing interesting happens in the movie, just talk talk talk, and the dialog was just terrible, and the Animals were really boring and not funny at all, no wonder my kids got bored quickly. not to mention it was obvious that the animals were not really talking, and that it was CGI.

bad story, slow paced plot, boring dialog, bad acting, awful CGIs and ridiculous scenes make this the worst film of 2011 so far.

my 4 years old girl actually asked to leave the theater about 2/3 the way, and i was more than happy to leave with her, while my wife stayed with the other two to finish this awful film. she told me the ending was not good either.

take my advice, avoid this at all costs, not even worth a DVD rental.

You know, when my movie theatre-working friend suggested this one, I wasn't too enthused but since I wanted something short, I figured I'd give this one a try. And for a while, as the story was being set up, I found myself a little bored what with that beginning scene. But by the time after the first scene of those zoo animals talking and then that party scene involving Kevin James and Rosario Dawson trying to one-up Leslie Bibb and her date on the dance floor, I started laughing loudly and mostly couldn't stop after that. Oh, and I also liked that whole scene with James and that gorilla at TGI Fridays. So on that note, Zookeeper gets a high recommendation. One more thing, it's fun to guess which animals' voices go with whatever celebrities before the credits reveal them and I had no trouble recognizing Sylvester Stallone, Cher, Maya Rudolph, Adam Sandler, and Don Rickles, who the friend I mentioned thought was dead. I asked him how he thought he died when he was in Toy Story 3 last year. "Cause he's old" was the reply which I replied by asking if he still thought Mickey Rooney was dead (this was when we saw that Ben Stiller movie, Night at the Museum). He knew that wasn't true. Oh, and this was the first time I found out about Sandler's wife Jackie making a cameo in one of his movies (Adam is one of the producers if you didn't know). She played the TGI Fridays waitress serving Kevin and the gorilla.

Kevin James plays Griffin Keyes, an average guy in an average job. He has a kind heart and an above average ability to relate to the animals in his care as the zookeeper of The Franklin Park Zoo in Boston.

The film opens with Griffin breaking up with his long time girlfriend Stephanie (Leslie Bibb). He weathers the disappointment and we fast forward 5 years where Griffin has now become the head zookeeper. At a celebration of his brother's upcoming wedding, Griffin spots Stephanie and his old feelings for her bubble to the surface. Lost and confused Griffin's animal buddies come to his rescue by 1 - letting him in on the secret that animals can communicate with humans (in English no less) and 2 - teaching him how to win the female of his species (advice that may be better left as that - advice) Some physical humor and not so funny scenes and lines fill out the movie for the long 104 minutes. Rosario Dawson plays Kate, the obvious new love interest for Griffin.

Unless you're between the ages of 8 and 12 leave this one unseen - I don't even think it is worth the matinée price. Maybe catch it some time when it has been "formatted to fit this screen" and "shortened to fit in the time allotted".

After reading some of the reviews for this movie, it is absolutely clear that most of the previous reviewers didn't get the point of the movie. It is a FAMILY movie.

You don't go to movies to see what you can pick apart, and then write a review that is already predisposed negatively against it. That's just stupid. Anyone who goes into a movie with the attitude they are going to hate the movie no matter, and writes an extremely negative review is an idiot. The reason to go to movies is to be entertained.

Zookeeper was a movie that entertained. The performances by all the cast members were very well done. There were a lot of laughs, and there was a lot of fun. My son, who by the way is 7, was in the perfect demographic for this movie. It had interesting characters, and situations.

For an adult, a movie with talking animals might not be your cup of tea, but for a small child, it is awesome. Yes, a child thinks it's funny when someone smashes into something or someone. Yes, for an adult, the movie might seem predictable, but truthfully, what movie isn't somewhat predictable? A young child (for whom the movie was made for) isn't going to be scrutinizing every tiny, single thing in a movie, just to say, " A-HA! SEE, I KNEW IT!". A child goes to the movies to be lost in imagination. My son laughed when there was a funny part. Whether it was funny because of the animals, or the humans, I heard a lot of laughter. And yes, I laughed a lot too, and so did my wife.

I believe that anyone who goes into this movie with the understanding that this is a movie targeted towards families with young children, that they will be entertained. This movie hits the mark for the appropriate audience members it was made for.

My rating of a 7 is as a parent, this is the perfect movie for the family with younger kids...Funny and James is charming as ever. Enjoy

My 5-year old daughter wanted to go to the drive-in. To my horror, this Kevin James movie was playing. I asked if she'd rather cover daddy with honey and unleash a few thousand fire ants on me. No deal. Had I had any idea how absolutely awful this movie was, I would have kept negotiating.

Right from the get-go, the story is so unengaging that a blank screen would have been preferable to the inanity that was displayed on it. My daughter tuned out after about 10 minutes and found the complimentary refrigerator magnet provided by the theatre more interesting. Nevertheless, we were all captive at this point and rather than stare at the speedometer for an hour I decided to stare at the colorful moving pictures in front of me.

Bad choice. There was not a single scene that evoked any sort of emotion. If there was an attempt at humor I missed it. The only thing that could be construed as remotely humorous was the fact that the writers (again) thought that this fat blob of idiocy (Kevin James) would have not one, but multiple beautiful women compete for him. I used the time to imagine the demographic to which this movie would appeal. Anyone with a frontal lobe or more than two functional senses would immediately be excluded. During one particular scene where something funny was supposed to have happened, I think I heard an orangutan a few cars away from us let out a guffaw, no doubt drooling some of his chaw onto his beer-belly stretched, bacon-stained, Dale Earnhardt t-shirt. I drew a mental image of the guy in my head and chuckled to myself, so I guess I can't say the movie was entirely humorless.

In summary, I can't believe anyone had so little pride in themselves as to allow their name to be listed in the credits. Had I taken part and someone said to me "Didn't I see your name listed in the credits for "Zookeeper?" I'd say "Uh, no, but I was listed as a sexual predator on a neighborhood watchlist - that's what you're likely thinking of."

Great family movie, fun without being stupid. Talking animals, adults and kids love that, and they are done well with voices we will recognize and enjoy. Yes, typical storyline boy meets girl, thinks it's the girl for him while the right girl is standing beside him all along etc., etc. Who cares? After over 100 years of movies, kinda hard to make stories we've never heard of before.

As for the family movie thing, yes, this generation of Americans seem to believe that any movie fun for a family to watch together cannot be a good movie unless it is made by Pixar or Disney. What narrow-minded adults we have all become,, and selfish, too, as if there is no room for anyone else's viewing pleasure other than our own. This would not be my top pick for a movie to watch on my own, but I found it amusing and would enjoy bringing the kids and adults in my family together with it.

After seeing the film at an advanced screening, I have to admit that this is one of the films to be put into the Kevin James hall of fame along with Hitch and Paul Blart. The film was a decent amount of laughter and the trailer does say a lot about the film. In "Zookeeper", Kevin James gives one of the greatest performances of his career as Griffin Keyes who is, you probably guessed, a zookeeper. Griffin asks Stephanie (Leslie Bibb) to marry him, but she rejects his proposal because she's embarrassed that he's a zookeeper. Five years pass and Griffin is still a zookeeper when he runs into Stephanie again and begins his quest to win her back. The animals of Franklin Park Zoo band together and reveal to Griffin that they can talk in an effort to keep him from leaving. To get him to stay, they decide to teach him how to win the girl.The film was a huge success to me and I do recommend it as a family comedy. I give it a 7/10.

This movie shows that even if it's a family movie it can be funny, even without awkward nude scenes, blood, cruel language etc. I thought this movie was hysterically funny and I laughed my ass off in some moments. There is good acting, some unfamiliar actors but they were good. Kevin James fit the role perfectly, no one could have done a better job. But I rated it six stars. It is funny, a good story behind it, but it's not "Dumb & Dumber".

I can just lay down one negative thing about the movie, it has nothing to do with the movie it self, kinda... I just miss one actors presence a little more. Ken Jeong! It needs more Ken Jeong.

So when it all comes to an end, it is a good movie for people in all age groups, funny, some sad moment(s) and it has a good story.

After reading some of the unfair reviews this film has received I felt compelled to add my two cents. Yes it's a formula film, yes we've all seen it before, yes you can see the plot coming a mile away.

Honestly, I expected to hate this film... I'm not a big fan of the lead and I normally do not like these types of films, but 30 minutes in I was won over (maybe it was all the animals). This is a light-hearted family film and should be taken for what it is. If you have kids, they will absolutely love it.

The big name actors voicing the animals was a pleasant surprise and the animal animation and "acting" was very believable.

A very enjoyable film.

Just watched this movie with the family. And I can honestly say I laughed out loud. We all did. Many, many times during this film. I haven't laughed so much, so hard at any films this year like I did this one. Perhaps with all the big titled summer blockbusters around, this movie just missed it's audience.

The geniuses behind this movie deserve a round of applause. Excellent humour, excellent entertainment for the whole family. Check the parental guide to see what you may or may not find appropriate. But as far as I'm concerned I would let 3 year old to 100 year old watch this movie.

I actually might have missed some funny lines, because I was laughing at what I just saw or heard.

Come on people this is a movie about animals talking to a Zookeeper. If it's something else your looking for. Then don't watch this movie.

Bravo!

I grew up going to THE BEST zoo in the world..The San Diego Zoo... The zoo staff were always taking care of the animals ..improving their habitats etc... This movie is wonderful fun for all ages! The casting is great and my final score is 5 stars.

Went to see Zookeeper last night at a charity screening for the Franklin Park Zoo and I actually had high hopes. I knew Kevin James would provide the usual frenetic, bumbling, stammering but well-intentioned physical comedy, the romantic component would be something only a Hollywood movie could conjure, and the talking/emoting animals would probably get old quick, but I hoped the combination of elements would result in a winning story. Alas, I was only partially rewarded. The animals far outshine the humans in this movie, and the TGI Friday's scene is where the animal/human connection is at its best (I never had a night like that at TGIF!), but the human story is all too familiar and the characters can only try to raise a script that fails to add anything new to the cinematic landscape. Overall a decent effort, a few chuckles, but nothing new. And two people near me commented that Ken Jeong's typically icky character was totally unnecessary for this film.