BEAR

Art by Ethan Butt

Photos from “Cocaine Bear” trailer

ability to enjoy the movie too much. I’m in the theater to laugh at some jokes and watch a bear do coke, not to analyze every single aspect of the movie.

The film has great CGI. The bear looks realistic, and so does the gore (perhaps too much for some people). Of course, the bear made some movements that a normal bear wouldn’t, but that’s the cost of making a comedic movie centered around an animal.

The camerawork was also good, adding suspense to scenes and creating tension. During chase scenes, the camerawork created a frantic tone without having to use shaky cam, which is something I find to be annoying. Shaky cam makes it hard to understand what’s going on and creates nauseating scenes.

The length of the movie was also good. At just an hour and a half, “Cocaine Bear” doesn’t try to drag itself out. The actors and actresses in the movie provided decent performances. While “Cocaine Bear” is no acting masterclass, it contained solid performances. I thought the child actors did quite well despite their young age.

The movie’s clear weakness is the plot. Blatent plot holes and contrivances riddle the movie. “Cocaine Bear” reinforces the fact that nothing is as powerful as the main character’s plot armor, not even a 500 pound apex predator high on cocaine. Outside of the ‘so the movie can happen moments’, the plot is still rather weak, but it’s good enough.There is a simple, coherent storyline and it works. Again, you’re supposed to focus on the bear and the blood, not the plot.

To watch this movie and enjoy it, you have to be able to laugh at gruesome scenes. One of the advantages of the lack of character development was that the characters death had less value, making it easier to digest their demise. By ensuring that no substantial emotional attachment is created, Banks makes a more lighthearted movie rather than a gut wrenching tragedy. Generally, characters are introduced, get a few funny scenes, maybe drive the plot forward, then they’re killed, simple as that. It isn’t a complex formula, and it created a simple, yet enjoyable, movie.

The bottom line is that “Cocaine Bear” did what it set out to do. It delivered a funny, violent movie about a bear and cocaine. It’s not a deep or serious movie, but it doesn’t try to be. It’s a movie where people cackle in the theaters I enjoyed the movie and had a good time.

“Cocaine Bear” is no cinematic masterpiece, but it gives you what you came for. The trailer is an excellent representation of the movie, if you find the trailer entertaining, the movie will be as well. If you’ll laugh at coke fueled carnage, this movie is for you.