Directed by Elizabeth Banks and very loosely based on true events, Cocaine Bear takes place in 1985 when a failed drug smuggling operation leads to millions of dollars of cocaine being dropped into a national forest and a 500-pound black bear consumes a significant amount, causing it to go on a drug-fueled bloody rampage. This results in an eccentric gathering of cops, criminals, tourists, and teenagers assembling in the forest facing the coked-up beast.
Between all the major blockbusters that have been keeping the film industry afloat after the impacts of the pandemic, there’s been an interesting amount of B-movie flicks that have snuck into theaters and have earned some significant followings. Some have been surprisingly very good and insane like Violent Night, while others may have not entirely hit the mark but make up for it by having entertaining qualities. Cocaine Bear is part of the latter group. It’s a B movie that delivers exactly what the title says and the goofy gory fun that was promised, but I felt it was held back from being a full-on crazy wild ride that was hyped up by critics and reviewers. That being said it certainly has the makings of being a cult classic that has actual effort put forth in it, primarily by the cast, production, and directing that make this an overall decent flick.
This film is of course a very loose adaptation of actual true events and it makes it very clear from the get-go that this is going to be a self-aware outlandish film that’s not going to have any sort of logic involved. So if you are on board with that then you’re going to have a good time but if you aren’t then this probably isn’t the film for you.
Elizabeth Banks has assembled an overall solid cast that knows exactly what kind of film they are in and therefore delivers the most fitting performances, ranging from silly to straight for their respective characters, giving the film its fun and mostly well-executed humor. We have some notable roles starting with Alden Ehrenreich and O’Shea Jackson Jr who play an absolutely hilarious duo of criminals who share so many great scenes and chemistry that they honestly deserve their own film. They were a fun comedic duo that worked for this kind of film, playing mostly for laughs that they earn every time they come up on screen, whether it be about their personal issues or their reactions to the insane premise.
We have goofy but lovable authorities played by Isiah Whitlock Jr and Margo Martindale who have outrageous reactions toward the drugged-up bear that fit perfectly with the tone of the film and it’s clear they both are having a great time.
Then we have Keri Russell and Ray Liotta who play their roles straight and do a really great job at it. Russell plays the part of a survivalist mom which does come in handy in the film in trying to protect the kids involved who are in grave danger.
Ray Liotta delivers a solid final performance of a walking and talking Scorsese character that makes the already outlandish situation even funnier, giving him a good final film to add to his legacy. Rest in peace Ray Liotta. You may have not had many scenes in this film but damn it did you own the screen when you were on it.
And then we have our titular character the Cocaine Bear who was truly the star of this film, delivering cartoonish humor and massively gory but entertaining kills in its endless search for more cocaine and blood. The bear is entirely CGI for all its appearances but even for a very small budget the film has it does look decent, especially with its drugged-out facial expressions and twitching that make it so funny to watch. It’s obviously not going for the behaviors and logical limitations of a normal black bear but it really doesn’t matter since it succeeds in bringing bloody entertainment as well as a surprising amount of effective suspense and horror.
The problem is that I feel there wasn’t enough of the cocaine bear on screen and not as large a body count as I was expecting, which leads into one of the bigger problems I had with the film as a whole. Going in I was expecting to have a first act where it establishes and shuffles the human characters into place before diving into a full-on endless blood bath that doesn’t stop. We do get some hilariously gory and really great kills as well as great scenes of brilliant horror but it only seems to come in small doses rather than continuously ramping up as the film goes on. I felt it wasn’t as insane as it should have been and that it could have pushed the envelope even more.
We get frequent breaks in tension with constant bouncing between different characters on different missions, so it never feels like the ongoing manic thrill ride that I was led to believe. Perhaps I expected too much but at the same time I was left wanting a lot more, which is ironic given this film involves a very addicting drug that should never be taken.
But does this flaw make this film terrible? I don’t think so because it still does provide entertainment and it’s clear there was effort put into this film in terms of production, set pieces, and technical elements, making this a mostly solid and watchable 80s-based B movie. I also have to give huge praise to Mark Mothersbaugh’s intense score which really added to the thrilling sequences we are given. Now he didn’t have to go as hard as he did with the music for a film like this but he did anyways and it was totally worth it.
This film could have easily been some wasteful garbage not worthy of the big screen but it managed not to be, thanks to the cast and crew who fully committed to making such a strange idea actually work and deliver bloody fun. It’s a straight-up self-aware and entertaining creature feature that isn’t trying to be deep or logical in any way. While I wish it was a lot crazier than it is I still enjoyed it and I’m still willing to recommend this film to anyone in need of a good time. I’m going to give Cocaine Bear a B- = 80.
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