Beast

I know when the trailer came out, we were all thinking of the GOOD 90s flick with lions in it, but, sorry, this is not The Ghost and the Darkness.

While this isnt in the same league, I am going to be honest and say I really enjoyed it. Its pretty entertaining, decent cinematography, good background music, half way decent jumpscares and thrilling scenes, overall I got a good evening out of it.

Just leave your brains out the door, because you have Mr. Idris Elba try and literally punch a lion in this film.

So fair warning, its a popcorn film, but a decent one in that. 3.5/5.

Beast isn't highbrow cinema at all. The movie knows the kind of film it is and then goes and tries to elevate it by coming up with really solid technical proficiency and great acting. The movie is just 90 minutes long, so it knows that it shouldn't overstay its welcome. The ending might come off as a bit underwhelming thanks to its abrupt nature. However, the film is great entertainment and everybody should give it a chance when in the mood for a simple and straight-to-the-point kind of movie.

Why isn't Idris Elba getting better roles? He's better than this nonsense!

I adore him and don't want to see him on crappy roles; I don't want to waste time watching him in these silly films.

Does anyone know why he's not getting better parts or a good star vehicle? I need to know!

I had to rewrite this because the first one was more of a rant with spoilers. You know those moments someone attempts to be a hero and somebody else goes "you're either really brave, or really stupid", well this is full of the latter. All the main actors keep making the most illogical decisions and the beast hunting them's actions also didn't make sense. Somebody said the writers think we're stupid. Idris Elba deserves better than this, even he couldn't save it. The script sucked, tries to hold emotional weight at times but it either falls flat or feels forced, especially from the stubborn daughter. Camera work sucked too, it looked like it was filmed by a regular guy walking around with a camera, not a professional especially when following in tight spaces, it was unstable. At times, it's like those videos of a school fight and the person recording keeps moving around and it's just commotion. It also starts out like a horror and is full of jump scares, still deciding if that's a good thing or not. I however loved that they cast locals for this, because that "African accent" Hollywood likes to use bugs me because I've never met anyone who speaks like that; like some director in the 80's decided this is how we sound and Hollywood still oblivious to it years later. So points for the accent. But the movie's still not worth the watch, it's just a family with really bad survival instincts and I haven't been this infuriated during a movie in recent memory. One of those movies that makes you wanna reach into the screen and knock some sense into the characters.

Ridiculous, annoying actor/character actions will make you want to feed these people to the lion. Especially the older daughter. I've not been this annoyed by a character in a long time. I think we are supposed to feel for her plight and her fear but all I wanted to do was to make her shut up. Even before the lion came.

And then There are the contrivances that are necessary because had these characters had brains they wouldn't be in as much trouble. We are a step Ahead of every jump scare, every plot point, every action. It's as if the writer and director have never had an original thought.

I've never thought Cujo was a great movie but at least you wanted the people to survive.