About the film (courtesy of Universal Pictures):
Inspired by the 1985 true story of a drug runner’s plane crash, missing cocaine, and the black bear that ate it, this wild dark comedy finds an oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converging in a Georgia forest where a 500 pound apex predator has ingested a staggering amount of cocaine and gone on a coke fueled rampage for more blow…and blood.
You’ve got a very R-rated true story set in 1985 focusing on a crazy cocaine fueled bear wreaking all kinds of havoc on an eclectic group of individuals over a day’s span directed by Elizabeth Banks. Okay, on paper this sounds like an odd mixture of ingredients. Well, just like ice cream and French fries or bananas and bacon (thank you, thank you very much, Elvis), these oddities come together for a surprisingly good cinematic delight to consume. Cocaine Bear is better than you might give it credit for.
If you’ve seen any of the many tv spots, trailers or even have read the first paragraph, you know exactly what this movie is all about. Being armed with this knowledge going in, Cocaine Bear was even more bizarre, in a good way, than I expected. Elizabeth Banks has made great strides from her last directorial effort (Charlie’s Angels (2019)) to this one. She took a ridiculous, hard to believe headline and turned it into 95 minutes of insane fun.
The mix of actors from Keri Russell to Margo Martindale to the late Ray Liotta, Cocaine Bear is layered with smooth talent of varying flavors. Mix in the likes of O’Shea Jackson Jr., Alden Ehrenreich, Isiah Whitlock Jr. and a barely recognizable Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and you’ve got yourself quite the collection of talent to help tell your story. All of these actors, along with several others not mentioned, help to paint a Jackson Pollock-esque picture of chaos and pure joy to experience.
Upon reflecting, I’m not totally unconvinced that maybe this film won’t give audiences a euphoric high similar to our leading junkie strung out bear was feeling. Cocaine Bear is a rollercoaster ride craziness with some pretty graphic scenes to deal with it. There’s also more than enough comedy help break up any uncomfortableness by the more squeamish.
And being that this is rated R, I will say that there are multiple reasons for this rating and you may not want to allow your younger ones to watch because you assume this is a silly comedy about a coked up bear. It’s heavier than you might think in that regard, so just beware. Also, be ready for lots of fun. Maybe this should have been titled Conflicting Bear instead, since I’m talking out of both sides of my mouth.
The bottom line is that Cocaine Bear is a wild ride and should be enjoyed surrounded by likeminded individuals looking to break away from whatever ails them and finding this film. For a title coming out in late February, I assumed it might be more of a dullard. Nope, not even close.
Get out to theaters catch a glimpse of just how crazy things got back in the 80s. Even the animals were doing some crazy Narcos shit. Get higher, baby and don’t ever come down! You can catch Cocaine Bear in theaters this evening before its wider release on Friday, February 24th.
