This based (extremely loosely) on true events dark comedy-horror hinted at being something special – but ends up little more than this generation’s Snakes on a Plane.
Failing to strike a proper balance between gory violence and consistent drug-pun-inducing comedy, it blows a gasket by the end – as the bear’s cocaine-fuelled rampage runs out of steam.
It starts off promisingly enough – and isn’t without merit – with its generally-intriguing premise that gets taken from 0-60mph by recognisable The Hunger Games and Pitch Perfect actress Elizabeth Banks, who directs the project.
Just sadly with mixed results, failing to balance all aspects – from scripting and comedy, to action and violence – satisfactorily. But fortunately, the main protagonist of the piece, a ‘high as a kite’ black bear rampaging through the woods provides good enough value for some noteworthy blood-splattering laughs.
In 1985 drug smuggler Andrew Thornton II – who plummets to his death after knocking himself unconscious – drops a shipment of cocaine worth millions of dollars from his plane, ending up in Georgia’s Chattahoocee-Oconee National Forest. Which is then ingested by the bear, who then gets ‘crazed’ at any human in his path as he searches for his next fix.
This leads to several intertwining stories of people who get embroiled in the tale, from drug-searching best friends Eddie (Alden Ehrenreich from Solo: A Star Wars Story) Daveed (Straight Outta Compton star O’Shea Jackson), Mum Sari (Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker’s Keri Russell) searching for her lost daughter, and Ranger Liz (played by arguably the movie-stealing Margo Martindale) and pal Peter (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) trying to tackle the beast – among others – this offers up plenty of brutal comedy-laden moments. In fact, so gory it should have arguably been an ‘18’ certificate film. Even the late Ray Liotta (Goodfellas) in his final film gets in on the action.
Arguably the best set-pieces are in the first half, with Ranger Liz’s battle in her cabin and ensuing ambulance chase probably being the stand-out scenario. But sadly, you never really care for any of the characters to any degree – probably feeling sorry for the bear more than anything – and it ends up being a bit hap-hazard from rookie director Banks. She never really gets her claws in, like a more-seasoned helmer may have done.
What this leads to is pockets of gruesome entertainment that would be ideal for the Tik Tok generation going out on a popcorn-crunching Friday/Saturday night – with some scenes destined to turn to memes.
But despite some comedically anarchic bite – it’s just not sustained enough to make this anything more than bear-ly serviceable fare.
ESP Rating: 2.5/5
Gavin Miller
Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough, Out Now
Cast: O’Shea Jackson Jr, Alden Ehrenreich, Keri Russell, Margo Martindale, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Christian Convery, Brooklyn Prince & Ray Liotta
Running Time: 1 Hr 35 Mins
Director: Elizabeth Banks
Go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk for all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux
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