Cocaine Bear review: Meme-ready horror-comedy offers less highs than hoped
Director Elizabeth Banks doesn't shy away from the gore or the absurdity of this barely true story that stars Keri Russell, Alden Ehrenreich, and Ray Liotta
Cocaine Bear is a movie that was already a certain kind of hit before it even came out thanks to its idiotic premise and outrageously blunt name. And while it is enjoyable and has many great moments, it doesn’t quite come together with polish. If this reminds you of the Samuel L. Jackson vehicle Snakes On A Plane, well, it’s no surprise. This movie is better than that 2006 momentary phenomenon (bears make funny faces and are fuzzy, after all) but keep Snakes On A Plane in mind should you buy a ticket to Cocaine Bear—it’s important to manage expectations for the quality of the high being offered.
Cocaine Bear is directed by the abundantly talented actress Elizabeth Banks, whose previous turns behind the camera include the very successful Pitch Perfect 2 and her 2019 stab at Charlie’s Angels with Kristen Stewart. It’s written by Jimmy Warden, who shares a credit on the very bad Netflix film The Babysitter: Killer Queen, and is loosely (extremely loosely) based on a real incident in which a drug runner dumped a bunch of cocaine out an airplane and then parachuted after it. For reasons probably less dopey than what’s seen in Cocaine Bear, he failed to open his chute and died. The drugs landed in Georgia’s Chattahoochee National Forest, where a bear found it, ate it, and also died.
The film does not stick too closely to the facts, trying instead to invent a Fargo-esque carnival of dumbass criminals, cops, and civilians all tangling with a ferocious bear whacked out on coke. There are some aspects that really work. One thing to admire throughout is how the picture leans into the scuzz. Right from the beginning there are little kids (Brooklyn Prince, from The Florida Project, and the extremely amusing Christian Convery) with potty mouths who intentionally and happily swallow some of the cocaine. In a world where comedy is so bland and safe, it’s good and right to be reminded that some movies—especially movies called Cocaine Bear—don’t really care if they offend.