Common Sense Media Review
By Sandie Angulo Chen , based on child development research. How do we rate?
age 17+
Action comedy has tons of drugs, swearing, gory violence.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 17+?
Any Positive Content?
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Violence & Scariness
a lot
Graphic violence is occasionally tempered by humor, but it's still relentless. The bear rips people apart; severed, bloody body parts are shown. It growls at and stalks children and adults and mauls, eviscerates, and kills many, many people. Expect close-ups of severe and fatal injuries, including a person who's shot in the head at close range by someone who's aiming at the bear. The bear decapitates and dismembers most victims, although others die in accidents caused by the bear's frightening presence. A person shot in the hand loses two fingers. A character beats three teens who are armed with a knife and ends up with a knife wound. The majority of characters die violent deaths. A character is grieving the death of his wife.
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Language
a lot
Extremely strong language in nearly every scene: nearly 100 uses of "f--k," plus "motherf----r," "s--t," "ass," "d--k," "damn," "piss," and "goddamn."
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Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
a lot
The movie hinges on a bear ingesting a huge quantity of cocaine. An early scene also shows a character snorting cocaine. Two 13-year-olds try cocaine by trying to swallow it. A couple of characters accidentally inhale it. Characters smoke cigarettes.
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Sex, Romance & Nudity
very little
An engaged couple kiss and talk about having babies. One character flirts with another who doesn't reciprocate her overtures. She makes a suggestive comment. He says "You've got a dusty beaver," meaning it literally, to which she replies, "I'm working on that."
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Products & Purchases
very little
GMC.
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Positive Role Models
some
Sari is a brave single mother who's determined to rescue her child. Dee Dee and Henry, despite being young, are quick-witted enough to escape the bear. Grieving Eddie is vulnerable and more of a pacifist than his father or best friend.
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Positive Messages
a little
Other than "stay away from a cocaine-altered bear," the movie's main message is to use teamwork to persevere during difficult circ*mstances.
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Diverse Representations
a little
Primary characters are White. In supporting cast are a Black cop (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), a Black "number two" to a drug dealer (O'Shea Jackson Jr.), an Asian EMT (South Korean actor Kahyun Kim), and a mixed-race deputy (Irish-English-Nigerian actor Ayoola Smart). Women have agency and power: One main character is a brave single mom who will stop at nothing to rescue her daughter. Another woman wields a gun.
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Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Cocaine Bear is director Elizabeth Banks' graphic action comedy based on a real 1985 event in which a 175-pound black bear ingested 75 pounds of cocaine that had been dumped from an airplane. It's very mature: Expect strong drug content, incessant swearing ("f--k," "s--t," "ass," "motherf----r," and much more), and relentlessly gory violence. The bear mauls and dismembers people, and there are explicit images of several severed limbs, as well as a decapitated head. People also die via gunshot (including a close-up of the blood splatter and gore) and from a car accident, but most of the many casualties are courtesy of the bear. There's also cigarette smoking, kissing, and a couple of suggestive comments. Spoiler alert: Although children are injured (and also try the cocaine they find), they both survive. The movie stars Keri Russell and O'Shea Jackson and features the final on-screen performance of the late Ray Liotta. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
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1:09
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Cocaine Bear
Parent and Kid Reviews
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- Parents say (23)
- Kids say (32)
age 14+
Based on 23 parent reviews
jcmcdowell Adult
March 16, 2023
age 17+
Satisfactory story, but good entertainment.
I liked this movie for the most part. I just saw it tonight in theaters and thought it was entertaining, but must be viewed by older teens and adults only. The violence includes MANY jump-scares, bloody attacks caused by the bear, and much suspense leading up to the jump-scares. It was much scarier in theaters than it would be streaming or on DVD. Although it was very entertaining at the beginning, it got boring and slow near the climax. It seemed like all the bear wanted was cocaine, and wherever it didn’t sniff the cocaine, it would look elsewhere and then unleash its attack wherever the cocaine could be found. Be prepared for a scene where two minors try out cocaine when they find it (although the scene isn’t very graphic). This movie is extremely disturbing with the jump-scares, suspense, and the loads and loads of cocaine displayed throughout the film. The language is also constant, mostly consisting of uses of “f--k” and “s--t”. It is entertaining, but not with a lot of good messages or role models.
Paul P. Parent
March 15, 2023
age 16+
Exactly what a movie called Cocaine Bear should be…
This is a great romp and utterly OTT film. The violence is visceral, gory yet somewhat cartoony and the bear is actually quite terrifying, with blood soaked slobber dripping from its mouth and a fierce hard stare that Paddington would be jealous of. Along with Snakes On A Plane, you get exactly what you pay for with a film called Cocaine Bear…. Don’t expect high drama or arthouse camera angles. This is 95mins of fun and scary action. Emphasis on the fun. I wouldn’t show this to anyone under 16 I think as it honestly demands a little maturity to understand the comedy and silliness the film strives to achieve.
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See all 23 parent reviews
What's the Story?
Loosely based on real events from 1985, COCAINE BEAR starts out with a drug smuggler (Matthew Rhys) ditching duffel bags full of cocaine bricks off of an auto-piloted plane into the Georgia wilderness. After the bags fall into the Chattahoochee National Forest, a black bear gets into the bags and quickly becomes addicted to the drug. The usually peace-loving bear then begins to wreak bloody havoc. Meanwhile, Missouri drug dealer Syd (Ray Liotta) instructs his number two, Daveed (O'Shea Jackson), to take his grieving son, Eddie (Alden Ehrenreich), to retrieve the remaining duffel bags. But they aren't the only folks heading into the forest: Two 13-year-olds, Dee Dee (Brooklynn Prince) and Henry (Christian Convery), have skipped school so that Dee Dee can paint a waterfall. Eventually Dee Dee's single mom, Sari (Keri Russell), finds out and sets out on their trail, where she meets park ranger Liz (Margo Martindale), who's unsuccessfully trying to flirt with park service administrator Peter (Jesse Tyler Ferguson). As the various groups collide in the forest, they must all contend with the now cocaine-obsessed apex predator that's stalking around the forest.
Is It Any Good?
Our review:
Parents say (23):
Kids say (32):
The idea of a co*ked-up black bear destroying everyone in its way to more drugs is initially novel, but the concept doesn't quite carry the entire movie. Some viewers will likely laugh a lot as the bear gets so aggressive that it starts attacking people -- sometimes because the unfortunate soul also found the cocaine and is covered in its debris. But after a while, Cocaine Bear becomes more of a slasher flick than a comedy, and the blood spray, brain splatter, torn limbs, fallen fingers, and accidental shootings start to mute the laughter. Plus, it's hard to invest in characters who exist solely to feed the same punchline (the bear loves cocaine! the bear will kill everyone in its way!) over and over again.
The most compelling subplot is between Daveed and Eddie, the latter of whom is a rare find in pop culture. The adult son of a drug kingpin, he not only wants out of the family business, but also wants to be left alone to grieve the death of his wife. And Martindale is likely to be a crowd favorite as gun-toting park ranger Liz, who had hoped the day would end with a romantic moment with the clueless parks service manager (played by an always-amusing Ferguson). Russell's formulaic "not without my daughter" story arc is bolstered by the goofy young Convery, who plays Dee Dee's best friend. And Sari's human "mama bear" character is a necessary foil to the actual bear, who's always on the hunt for more of the cocaine to eat. Banks and writer Jimmy Warden milk every inch of humor from the titular pitch, but the bear's manic drug-induced antics leave little for the human characters to do other than die in a bloody, if occasionally funny, manner. Ultimately this movie is an entertaining gag that grows a bit tiring by the 10th shot of viscera and gore.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the violence in Cocaine Bear. Is it realistic, cartoonish, disturbing, or funny? How does violence impact viewers differently if it's wrapped in humor?
Discuss the drug use in the story. What's unique about the way substance use is portrayed here? Is it glamorized? How did you feel when the two teens tried drugs?
Are there any role models in the movie? Does every movie need to have role models? Who were you most hoping would survive?
What genre do you consider this movie? Is it a comedy, horror, thriller, action film -- or a combination?
Movie Details
- In theaters: April 18, 2023
- On DVD or streaming: March 14, 2023
- Cast: Keri Russell, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Alden Ehrenreich
- Director: Elizabeth Banks
- Inclusion Information: Female directors, Female actors, Black actors
- Studio: Universal Pictures
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- Topics: Friendship, Science and Nature, Wild Animals
- Character Strengths: Perseverance
- Run time: 95 minutes
- MPAA rating: R
- MPAA explanation: bloody violence and gore, drug content and language throughout
- Last updated: August 9, 2024
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Cocaine Bear
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