Blu Tuesday is a weekly column where we review the newest Blu-ray and 4K releases, along with a brief rundown of the included bonus material, to determine whether they’re worth buying, renting or skipping.
Pick of the Week: “Cocaine Bear”
Though it may sound like a ridiculous but fun B-movie on paper — “Snakes on a Plane” for the meme generation, if you will — “Cocaine Bear” is an incredibly underwhelming experience that never fully leans into the sheer campiness of its premise. None of the characters or intersecting plotlines are very interesting, and while there are a few funny moments scattered throughout — particularly the paramedics sequence featuring TikTok comedian Scott Seiss — the film is surprisingly devoid of humor. It’s hard to imagine a situation in which a movie called “Cocaine Bear” doesn’t deliver on its promise, and yet director Elizabeth Banks has managed to drop the ball nonetheless, turning what should have been an outlandish genre flick about a coked-out grizzly bear who goes on a killing spree into something so dull and unimaginative that it renders the whole exercise pointless.
Extras include an audio commentary by Banks and producer Max Handleman, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at making the film, deleted scenes and a gag reel. FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
Also Out This Week:
“Magic Mike’s Last Dance” — 2015’s “Magic Mike XXL” is easily one of the best sequels in recent memory, so it’s pretty disappointing that director Steven Soderbergh’s return to the franchise is such a joyless slog. Not only is the film an unnecessary continuation of the Magic Mike story, but it completely ignores everything that made its predecessor (and to a lesser extent, the 2012 original) so much fun. The absence of Mike’s dancer friends is a particularly baffling decision, as it strips the movie of the camaraderie that was so essential to the previous films’ success. Furthermore, the relationship between Channing Tatum and Salma Hayek’s characters feels forced and unearned, leaving little else to appreciate besides the dance numbers, which also pale in comparison to past installments. Though “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” serves as a good advertisement for the live stage show, as an addition to the existing franchise, it fails on just about every level. Extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette and a deleted scene. FINAL VERDICT: SKIP
Disclosure: Bullz-Eye was provided a copy of the above titles for review purposes.
