Review: Cocaine Bear 4K UHD
4K Ultra HD, Blu-ra, DVD & Digital Download: Cocaine Bear (2023)
Inspired by an actual event from 1985 when a black bear ingested some cocaine that had been dumped by a drug dealer, Cocaine Bear ramps up the silliness (and the bloodletting) and unleashes a coked up bear into a procession of people that are little more than snacks to him.
A variety of characters are introduced throughout the 95 minute running time, with some managing to survive until the end credits roll, while others succumb to the teeth and claws of the bear. Not all character deaths are lamented though, as scattered throughout are characters who are completely unlikeable, mostly in a “pantomime bad guy, moustache twirling” kind of way.
The narrative veers tonally from one moment to the next, with director Elizabeth Banks never quite seemingly sure which direction to take the movie in, which can make for a lack of empathy for a lot of the characters and the situations they find themselves in.
The CGI bear is quite obviously not real, but definitely works for a lot of the more humorous moments, and when the killing begins the set pieces are so over the top that you can’t help but laugh and emit the odd unrestrained cheer of joy.
There are no real surprises as to how it is all going to end, but the journey it takes you on is fun filled and has quite a few crazy kills.
Originally filmed on digital, this 4K UHD release looks superb. Everything is pin sharp and the contrast levels give deep blacks that are not crushed and keep all the detail, especially noticeable in the nighttime scenes.
This “Maximum Rampage Edition” also features some very enjoyable special features, with the commentary track by Director/Producer Elizabeth Banks and Producer Max Handelman being a particular highlight.
Not the gorefest that a lot of people were expecting after the initial trailer hit the internet, and the tonal fluctuations in the narrative can be annoying at times, but overall it’s a cocaine fuelled bear doing some spectacular kills…and that’s more than enough to keep me happy.
‘MAXIMUM RAMPAGE EDITION’ EXCLUSIVE BONUS FEATURES:
- 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
Cocaine Bear is available now on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital Download.
Review by Dave from a disc kindly supplied by Mediumrare Entertainment via Fetch Publicity.