How does Alden Ehrenreich, who recently played Han Solo, end up in a movie like Cocaine Bear? How does Ray Liotta (rest in peace), a key cast member in Goodfellas, end up in a movie like Cocaine Bear? How does the rest of the cast of Cocaine Bear, end up in a movie like that after they’ve been successful elsewhere? The answer isn’t that their careers have fallen off of a cliff; it’s that Cocaine Bear is fucking awesome. I’m not even sure that it’s really a great movie, or that I even liked it that much. At the very least, though, it was fun to watch in a stupid way. How does a movie like this even succeed in today’s market? Well, as Marvel movies have recently gotten more flack, we have seen a rise in different types of movies coming to market again. People have been looking for escapism in easy and funny ways, and Cocaine Bear fills that gap. Personally, I remember laughing hard the first time I saw a commercial for Cocaine Bear. The title explained everything we needed to know. We wanted to go see it. There’s a lot of talk about higher art in terms of filmmaking, and many people would likely not consider this film in that area. However, it is in the top of the list in the less nuanced sense of filmmaking, in my opinion. It taps into the beautiful art of slapstick comedy with some of its chaos. What I love is what it means for the larger picture of movies. I don’t necessarily want more movies of this style, but I also want more movies with this corny heart. A bunch of great actors together for a “stupid” movie? Why not? It appears it’s possible to happen again now just because of the irrational success of an odd movie like Cocaine Bear.
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