The initial excitement surrounding Cocaine Bear faded quickly, and I found myself wanting something more substantial afterward. I believe the film’s biggest problem is that it attempts to juggle too many elements. There are somewhere between seven and eight characters introduced, each given considerable screen time to explore their individual stories and reasons for being there. This significantly detracts from the focus on what audiences came to see: the cocaine bear. A stretch of nearly 45 minutes is dedicated to these supporting characters, without any action or appearances by the titular bear. That portion felt slow and lost my attention; however, things improved noticeably once the bear returned. The scene involving the paramedic was particularly well done. The humor didn't quite land either. While the audience around me was laughing openly, I only managed a few chuckles myself. This made the writing feel somewhat uninspired. However, this lack of comedy is balanced by the sheer brutality shown on screen. There are some genuinely disturbing deaths that don’t hold back on blood and gore. Some of the effects seemed to use prosthetics, which always have an unsettling look to them. The narrative itself was reasonably good, but the ending was awful and entirely foreseeable. I thought it was excessively dramatic and cheesy, but not in a charming way. Visually, the bear looked quite convincing. The CGI work was generally well-executed, though there are a few scenes where it’s noticeable. Ultimately, I found the film mildly enjoyable, but I can't shake the feeling that it didn’t reach its full potential. Score: 55% | Verdict: Average

Source on TMDB