Beast

Despite its bloody violence and disturbing body count, this is ultimately a well-acted if predictable story about a father trying to save his daughters from a dangerous animal. Elba plays slightly against type here as a slightly nerdy and clueless father, while Copley is a gun-toting wildlife expert. Icelandic director Baltasar Kormákur focuses on the relationship between Nate and his two girls, who are each struggling with the impact of their mother's illness and passing. Their grief is compounded by the fact that Nate and his wife were separated at the time of her terminal diagnosis and death. Mer is angry and resentful, while peace-keeping little sister Nora is anxious. Meanwhile, the cinematography makes good use of the landscape, alternating between wide shots of the reserve and close-ups of frightened faces, kicking legs, and hands holding weapons. There are legitimately gasp-worthy moments and several scenes in which viewers will worry that the filmmakers might do the unthinkable and kill off a major character.

The idea that the lion is a John Wick-like killer out to avenge the death of his pride (at the hands of poachers) is interesting but not compelling enough to make him less horrifying. Unlike a human revenge story, in which the vengeance-seeker might avoid or limit hurting innocents, the lion attacks all the humans it encounters, not just poachers. And since there's not a whole lot of discussion about conservation beyond a short exchange in which Nora says she's read that anti-poachers can be as ruthless in dealing with poachers as poachers are dealing with wild animals, the plot device falls flat. The idea that humans subjected the lion to their cruelty and therefore deserve his rage is untenable once the lion slaughters an entire village. While this film is far from family-friendly, there are surprisingly tender father-daughter scenes, as well as underlying messages for parents and teens -- namely to improve their communication (and survival) skills and learn how to work as a team.