March 27, 2023 by Jade Helal (‘23)
“The bear. It did f*****g cocaine! A f*****g… a bear did cocaine, dad!”
Cocaine Bear, the 2023 movie directed by Elizabeth Banks, is a unique and energetic movie that offers a fresh take on the crime-thriller genre. I watched this movie in theaters at an 8:10 pm showing on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. When the movie finished, I sat in silence for a few minutes as the credits rolled, while I tried to process what had just happened. Since then, I have had many thoughts brewing, and I feel it’s my duty to share them. I am in no way a film critic, but hopefully, I can help others decide whether they would like to watch this film, or just give insight to those who have already decided they don’t want to embark on the transformative journey that is Cocaine Bear.
The story follows a 500-pound bear consuming a significant amount of cocaine before embarking on a drug-fueled rampage. This sounds like a bizarre concept, but it is shockingly based on a true story! Although the real 175-pound bear has a less gory but more depressing background of death by an overdose of 3 to 4 grams of cocaine, some aspect of truth shines through in the movie. In reality–beyond the 3-4 grams in the overdose–there were 75 pounds of missing cocaine out of the 300 dropped. And the dead bear’s stomach was, allegedly, found to be packed to the brim with the substance–a fate much grimmer than what is portrayed in the movie. A few people have critiqued this film as glorifying the consequences of human drug use on animals. This is a conversation to be had, but I don’t think this movie had that kind of malintent.
Let’s first discuss the characters. This might not be a huge shock, but multiple characters die at the hands of the savage, distressed bear. Despite the film being quite short, standing at 95 minutes, there were a few characters for whom I developed a liking. But overall, there were so many characters introduced so quickly, it was very difficult to get attached to them, let alone care what their eventual fate turned out to be. For the characters I did care about, it was their minimal (although developed) backstories that kept me from getting bored. When something was happening to them, I was kept engaged due to this small connection. Even the characters I did not care as much for were still well-written and funny.
The actors themselves also did amazing, leaning into the goofiness while maintaining respect for the movie. Some of the most notable actors were Ray Liotta, Keri Russell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Brooklyn Price, O’Shea Jackson Jr., and Alden Ehrenreich. The names of the characters themselves were also quite ludicrous, with my favorite duo being a couple, Elsa and Olaf. The dialogue between the characters was very concise. The comedic timing of this movie is something I will expand upon later, but the dialogue never failed to amuse me. The lines fell out of the characters’ mouths so seamlessly and at the perfect pace. It felt reminiscent of the movie “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World,” with an unreal aspect, something you typically only find in sitcoms or comics. But it still kept its realism through great acting.
As for the plot, there honestly was none. The movie was mostly composed of multiple side stories that, near the end, intertwine. All involving the bear or the cocaine, of course. But, seeing that characters were dying left and right, several of the side quests fell short. With that being said, this movie was still mind-bogglingly entertaining. Weirdly though, it was so, incredibly, predictable, in a comedic sense. The camera would slow, panning to see seemingly nothing, the music would stop…and still, every single time, I gasped! It was so well done that the predictability was still unpredictable. It was humorous, while still managing to keep people immersed in the story. It may have been lacking in a traditional storyline, but it made up for it with its comedic and wacky bits. Even the deaths were a chuckle fest. Not only were they mostly caused by the characters’ stupidity, but the gore was done in a bloody, comedic way. This was all well done to keep a multitude of viewers interested, whether it be an immature pre-teen focusing on the gore or an older adult there for hilarious one-liners.
The cinematography of this movie was nothing to rave about, however. It was not bad, but also not extravagant. As mentioned earlier, the actual use and timing of music by Banks were already incredible, but her choice of music was also very calculated. The music is credited to be by Mark Mothersbaugh, who did an amazing job keeping it nostalgic to the time period in which the movie was set–1985.
The real star of this piece was truly the bear herself. Yes, she may have given drugs to her children, but the way in which she chose to spare certain kinder characters’ lives did not go unnoticed! The CGI was not overly exaggerated, which was appreciated. It gave the right amount of expression to hint at the bear’s next move, without overdoing it and being too unreal. An honorable mention of iconic roles in the movie was the dog, Rosetta.
Banks took a wild concept and made it into what one might call a “comedic tragedy.” She is an absolute genius of a director, having created such an eccentric and humorous movie from beginning to end. The special effects had a perfect balance of being comedic without being overly grotesque. Much like the music had the perfect comedic timing without being overly predictable. The dialogue also had the perfect pacing without losing jokes due to its swiftness. Pitch Perfect director Elizabeth Banks found the perfect balance to avoid overdoing the silliness in this film which has made this a new favorite of mine.
This movie is simultaneously the best and worst movie you’ll ever see. I laughed, I cried, and I found myself constantly shocked at how entertaining and amusing it turned out to be. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this violent ride of a movie. The theater was filled with frequent laughter and gasps, which made me think I was not the only one to enjoy it. This movie is definitely a movie to add to your watch list if you enjoy gory, funny, original films. And even if you end up not liking it, I can assure you that after watching this piece you will never be able to hear the word “cocaine” without wondering when the bear will follow.