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Cast: Keri Russell, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Christian Convery, Alden Ehrenreich, Brooklynn Prince, Isiah Whitlock Jr., with Margo Martindale and Ray Liotta
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.
Inspired by the true of the Cocaine Bear as known as Pablo Eskobear (sometimes spelled Escobear)or Cokey the Bear,was a 175-pound (79-kilogram) American black bear that fatally overdosed on cocaine in 1985. The cocaine had been dropped by drug smugglers in the wilderness in Tennessee, United States. The bear was found dead in northern Georgia and was stuffed and displayed at a mall in Kentucky.
Actress/Director, Elizabeth Banks took the story and create a horror comedy from it that has a good amount of action and plenty of laughs to go around. The film also has a mixed bag of characters including a few teens, a worried mom and a handful of off the wall characters including a forest ranger who gets attacked by the bear and is out for revenge but her shooting skills are off a bit.
There is a lot to like but the film also isn't perfect. It gets dragged down by the drug dealers story. If they focused more on the main characters and the craziness it could have been so much better.
Still it is an entertaining ride, I got some laughs from it especially during the ambulance scene and the scene leading up to it. If you like a good horror/comedy then check out little gem. Available on VOD now and on BLU-RAY AND DVD April 18, 2023 with Special Features that include:
Alternate Ending
Deleted & Extended Scenes
Gag Reel
All Roads Lead to Cokey: The Making of COCAINE BEAR - Meet the hilarious ensemble brought together to bring the movie of what is soon to be the world's most famous bear to life.
UnBEARable Bloodbath: Dissecting the Kills - From rigging to special effects makeup, to some of the actors doing their own stunts, we'll get a bears-eye view into some of COCAINE BEAR's hilarious and gory kill scenes.
Doing Lines - Cast and filmmakers read lines from the script to COCAINE BEAR, which was a work of art unto itself.
Feature Commentary with Director/Producer Elizabeth Banks and Producer Max Handelman
UNIVERSAL PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT
*** 1/2 Out Of *****