Uncowardly Lion CG Steals the Show

There is a long tradition of Man/Women vs animal B-movies but its not often they get this kind of budget. The result of the cash infusion is still a B-movie but with an A list actor in the lead role and probably the best CGI animal ever put to screen.

Beast sees Idris Elba take his two daughters on safari in Africa following the death of their mother and sees them run into a killer lion on the rampage after poachers killed its pack. The characters are as stock as they come, with moustache twirling animal killers and moody teenagers (what do you mean there's no Wi-Fi in the middle of nowhere on a game reserve!) and everyone acts just as stupidly as they need to in order for the set pieces to happen. That would be all there is to say if it wasn't for the movies two main attractions;

Firstly, Idris brings a star power these films don't normally have. His gruff, emotionally distant but decent dad is the kind of character he can play in his sleep but he brings gravitas and you are always on his side, even when half his dialogue is just telling his daughters to stay still.

The real star of the show however, is the rampaging lion. Huge and snarling, you have no problem believing it tore its way through a village and the battle scars it accrues during the film give it real character. The fact it is fully CG is incredible and it represents a new benchmark for the industry.

This makes Beast well worth checking out, even if you aren't normally a fan of the cheesy dialogue and dubious character actions that are a staple of the genre.

7 mauled poachers out of 10.

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