Cocaine Bear (9/10)

by Tony Medley

92 minutes

R

I’ve seen a lot of funny movies, but only a very few that had me laughing uncontrollably. The three that come immediately to mind are A Touch of Class (1973), the first third anyway, Freaky Friday (2003), and Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 (2008). Now add this one. There were several scenes that put me into convulsions.

It starts with a bad guy bailing out of a plane after throwing out lots of cocaine bags. When he lands in the forest he sees a bear acting strangely and then it attacks him. Turns out the bear has found the cocaine and become addicted.

Directed by Elizabeth Banks from a script by Jimmy Warden, believe it or not it is based on a 1985 incident that actually happened. This is an adventure with some graphic gory scenes of people after they have been mauled by the bear or been shot. But it is all played for laughs. I don’t think there was a scene when I did not have a smile on my face if I wasn’t laughing out loud.

The cast is uniformly excellent. While it seems unfair to select only a few without mentioning the others, Keri Russell as the mother searching for her daughter, Isiah Whitlock, Jr., as an officer tracking down the dope, the late Ray Liotto as a drug dealer, Margo Martindale as a Ranger who might be slightly underqualified…ah, shucks, they are all terrific and funny; the cast should get an ensemble award. But special mention has to go to Allan Henry who was the bear performer and whose antics were transformed by the magic of CGI. This bear is amazing.

Banks should get a Best Director nomination, at least, but this is comedy so don’t bet on it, even though comedy is a lot more difficult than drama.

If you want an escape from what’s going on in the world today, don’t miss this one because it is a delight. In fact, I’m still laughing.