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Beast Reviews

In light and dark, dry and wet, peaceful and pouncing, the critters— entirely CG from my understanding—might be the most realistically rendered animals since 2019’s Lion King.

Full Review | Jul 16, 2024

Beast is an effective B-movie thriller that overcomes its mediocre writing with well-shot sequences and a solid lead performance by Idris Elba.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Jul 12, 2024

The cast is better than the film deserves and has terrific chemistry – deft at making themselves than likable enough to hope they survive, stupid enough to punch a CGI lion (yeah, not smart).

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jun 9, 2024

The narrative structure of this type of stories is always the same, only the animal in question changes. [Full review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 4/10 | Apr 9, 2024

Not every movie is going to change your life. Some of them just have movie stars fighting a creature they could not possibly fight in real life. But, in many of these cases, the movie is just fun.

Full Review | Original Score: B- | Feb 28, 2024

Though peopled with characters behaving irrationally, this Baltasar Kormákur directorial is enjoyable in an economic, bare-bones way.

Full Review | Oct 4, 2023

Beast is filled with appreciation for South Africa and plenty of fun action scenes, but its script stops it from reaching its true potential.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Aug 18, 2023

Easiest way to put it… this is surprisingly good. For a 90 minute thriller you’ll find some wicked intense shots that give you a ton of anxiety! Idris Elba sells this entire concept in an exciting way & there’s even a bit of emotion to it all!

Full Review | Jul 25, 2023

There's some fun to be had with the action sequences when the mayhem starts but there's quite a lot that is just plain silly.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 29, 2023

So, accepting the absence of thematic content and realistic portrayals of the natural world such films inevitably must be somewhat about themselves and how they were made. And Beast is made with a degree of elegance that’s wholly unexpected...

Full Review | Feb 7, 2023

Beast is one of those action films that you have to suspend believe & hold on for the ride with you friend or family member. Elba plays a father of two caught in the worst case scenario where a Lion is hunting them. Its as cringy as it is entertaining

Full Review | Original Score: D | Dec 26, 2022

...fares best in its compelling and periodically enthralling first half...

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Dec 16, 2022

…Beast is passable Saturday night fare, but despite a lot of hard work on the technical side, this lion doesn’t make much of a roar…

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 28, 2022

For much of its slim running time, Beast does what it’s supposed to do, right down to the buzzy moments of silliness where it bravely, too briefly heads over the top.

Full Review | Oct 29, 2022

It’s not the most robust cinematic meal, but as a style exercise, it earns a modest place among the rest of the pride.

Full Review | Oct 25, 2022

Everything in this action thriller seems real. So, of course, that makes the thrills extra chillier.

Full Review | Oct 20, 2022

The escalation of terror is genuinely exciting until the movie bogs down in CGI absurdity instead of reasonably credible survival.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Oct 18, 2022

Beast is not a great movie. Some may even say it’s terrible. Where the movie flounders is when director Baltasar Kormákur attempts to make it too much about a man reckoning the death of his wife via some very overwrought dream sequences.

Full Review | Oct 17, 2022

Even at just 93 minutes, “Beast” often feels padded and stretched. Icelandic director Baltasar Kormakur and journeyman screenwriter Ryan Engle paint themselves into a narrative corner with no chance of logical or believable escape.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Oct 4, 2022

It’s a hot mess and kind of basic. But it’s tons of fun, baby.

Full Review | Oct 3, 2022

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

A father and his two teenage daughters find themselves hunted by a massive rogue lion intent on proving that the Savanna has but one apex predator. A father and his two teenage daughters find themselves hunted by a massive rogue lion intent on proving that the Savanna has but one apex predator. A father and his two teenage daughters find themselves hunted by a massive rogue lion intent on proving that the Savanna has but one apex predator.

• Baltasar Kormákur
• Jaime Primak Sullivan
• Liyabuya Gongo
• Martin Munro
• Daniel Hadebe
• 631 User reviews
• 205 Critic reviews
• 54 Metascore
• 3 nominations

Top cast 16

• Poacher Mizozi

• Dr. Nate Samuels

• Norah Samuels

• Meredith Samuels

• Martin Battles

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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• Trivia On why he did the movie, Idris Elba stated: "I come from an era where these sort of films were the norm, like high-anxiety, 'Run, chase, run, chase, look out, look behind you!' This was an opportunity for me to make a film like that. I've done thrillers before, but this was the first time it involved this cat-and-mouse aspect to it. I was really intrigued by the family dynamic, the daughters, the nature of grief, this doctor who's essentially someone that's composed and tries not to panic, found himself doing just that," Elba tells Complex about the survival thriller directed by Baltasar Kormákur. "I just love the script. I love Baltasar, the director. I wanted to work with him. He's made some really incredible survivor movies, and I just wanted to get his take on what this might be like."
• Goofs When Dr. Nate Samuels (Idris Elba) is in the lake looking for keys, he's wading almost shoulder-deep in the water. In the next shot when he is out of the water, his shirt is completely dry.

Martin Battles : Come On You Bastard

[last lines]

Martin Battles : I'm Sorry Boy

• Crazy credits After credits we here the sounds of the Savannah and lions roaring when the title comes up several slash marks appear on it followed by a lion growling
• Connections Featured in Chris Stuckmann Movie Reviews: Beast (2022)
• Soundtracks Black Man's Cry Written & Performed by Fela Kuti (as Fela Anikulapo Kuti) Courtesy of Knitting Factory Records/Partisan Records

User reviews 631

• eric-312-417476
• Aug 19, 2022
• How long is Beast? Powered by Alexa
• August 19, 2022 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• Official Instagram
• South Africa
• Universal Pictures
• RVK Studios
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $36,000,000 (estimated)
• $31,846,530
• $11,575,855
• Aug 21, 2022
• $59,095,809

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 33 minutes
• Dolby Atmos
• Dolby Digital

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'Beast' review: Good dad Idris Elba battles ticked-off CGI lion for a tolerable mane event

Rule of the movie jungle: It’s harmful to one’s health to square up with a vengeful and ridiculously dangerous lion – computer-generated image or real – even if you’re Idris Elba .

Elba’s signature cool gets tossed around a bit, though the British actor does get to throw haymakers at a roaring creature in the mane event of “Beast” (★★½ out of four; rated R; in theaters Friday). The over-the-top survival thriller definitely fits into the aesthetic of Hollywood’s August burn-off period, where bad (and so-bad-they’re-good) movies reign, though Elba’s charisma goes a long way in terms of enjoyability as do some hair-raising animal attacks.

Directed by Baltasar Kormákur (“ Everest ,” “2 Guns”), the film begins with recently widowed Nate Samuels (Elba) taking his teenage daughters Mare (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Jeffries) on a trip to the South African savanna where Nate met their mom. The three are still reeling following her death from cancer when they meet up with old friend Martin (Sharlto Copley), a wildlife biologist who shows the visitors around his reserve – including a family of lions.

'Beast': Idris Elba has Leonardo DiCaprio to thank for his 'realistic' lion fight

Another pride, however, was just slaughtered by poachers, all except for one huge male lion that escaped. Ticked off and out for blood – any human’s will do – the rogue beast attacks the group, savagely injuring Martin and turning their van into the one thing keeping them alive. It’s not even good at that, as the lion pushes the vehicle and comes flying through the window, and Nate fights to keep everyone safe from this monster.

“Beast” is lean and mean at 93 minutes, but still the movie takes its time to get to the good stuff. Once the vicious lion starts stalking its prey – and claustrophobic attacks lead to an epic face-off between man and nature – the film finds its way and offers up some decent jump scares before the story begins to dip toward far-fetched fantasy. You will have to endure some forgettable B-movie dialogue: “We’re in his territory now,” Copley somehow says with a straight face as the movie’s four-legged villain makes his presence felt.

For a digital critter, the main lion’s not bad and feels real, especially in the night scenes where it comes off as a horror villain on a bloody paw-ful killing spree. (Is there enough CGI lion? Never.) Logic takes a nosedive later on, as the lion becomes an obsessive combination of Cujo, the Terminator and the shark from “Jaws.” What’s interesting, be it a conscious choice or a budgetary one, is that while the primary antagonist is a ripping, biting, tearing terror on people, the camera looks away when there’s creature-on-creature carnage – a decision that plays well for the animal lovers in the audience.

Knuckles up: Why Idris Elba's furious critter is the very best thing about 'Sonic the Hedgehog 2'

But “Beast” tends to force human emotion: The narrative hints at a cultural exploration around Nate’s late wife and her village but it’s fleeting. Plus, when you have children in danger, you don’t have to do a lot to imagine a guy going into super-dad mode, and the film leans conveniently with its story choices. (People tend to be wounded in the path of an out-of-control big cat, so good thing Nate’s a doctor!)

It isn’t Elba’s “Sharknado” but also not exactly his “Out of Africa,” so just enjoy this late-summer flick for what it does well: a primal fight between man and very mad lion that brings unhinged beauty to a rousing “Beast.”

From 'Top Gun' to 'Nope': 10 magical movie moments we can't stop talking about this summer

Review: Idris Elba, meet lion. The new thriller ‘Beast’ doesn’t beat around the bush

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Lions and poachers and snares, oh my! In the satisfyingly grisly survival thriller “Beast,” Idris Elba plays a grieving widower who drags his two teenage daughters to a South African game reserve, embarking on an emotional journey that devolves into a nightmarish tussle with Mother Nature. Jean-Luc Godard famously said that all you need to make a movie is a girl and a gun; this one has two girls and several rifles, though one of them only fires none-too-effective tranquilizer darts. The movie’s real weapon is a very large, very angry, skillfully computer-generated king of the jungle that turns out to have a major bone to pick (or crush) with the human race.

The animus is more than justified, given the ruinous state of the world in general and the ruthless poachers who’ve hunted these lions in particular. A few of those poachers come to a deservedly nasty end in the prologue, a tense nighttime set piece that establishes the human-versus-nature stakes and, no less important, a consistent, coherent visual scheme. Most of the mayhem in “Beast” is staged in lengthy, serpentine tracking shots that keep pace with the characters as they try to detect, evade and flee from a predator that might always be just a few lunges away. As his camera prowls the rugged terrain in precisely choreographed movements, director Baltasar Kormákur (working with cinematographer Philippe Rousselot) achieves a physical groundedness that makes even a digitally engineered predator seem palpably real.

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That groundedness also anchors the predictably hokey if refreshingly straightforward narrative preliminaries laid out in Ryan Engle’s screenplay (based on a story by Jaime Primak Sullivan). Nate Samuels (Elba) is a doctor, which you can bet is going to come in handy. He and his daughters — moody, photography-loving Mare (Iyana Halley) and spunky Norah (Leah Jeffries) — are visiting South Africa, the homeland of their recently deceased wife and mother. (The movie was shot on location in the country’s Northern Cape province.) They’re on a healing journey, or at least that’s the idea; family friction keeps intruding, much of it rooted in Nate’s specific failures as a husband and father.

Helping to relieve the mood is Nate’s longtime friend Martin (the invaluable Sharlto Copley, from “District 9” ). A combination game warden and wildlife whisperer, Martin is on hand to play safari guide and murmur ominous warnings about “the law of the jungle,” even as he demonstrates firsthand how harmless and cuddly the local lion prides are. You can’t blame them for the graphically mauled human corpses that suddenly turn up in a nearby village. That would be the handiwork of a much bigger, meaner lion that soon roars into the frame, trapping the group deep in the South African bush with only a stalled jeep for shelter. There’s a peculiarly monstrous, almost mutant quality to this dark-maned beast, who looks a bit like Aslan of the Dead , or perhaps Scar from “The Lion King” after a cocktail of steroids and bath salts.

That sounds ridiculous, but it turns out to be just the right amount of ridiculous for this shrewd, stripped-down late-summer diversion. Kormákur has been working his way toward this B-movie sweet spot for a while. Over a career that’s zigzagged between his native Iceland and Hollywood, he’s become a reliable disaster artist, capsizing a boat in “The Deep,” stranding two lovers at sea in “Adrift” and following mountain climbers on a snowy death march in “Everest.” The human body in extremis is his comfort zone, and here, with pouncing paws, snapping jaws and discreetly blood-gushing wounds, he sustains — and, crucially, modulates — the threat of grievous bodily harm.

It helps that the central foursome, especially Halley and Jeffries, are as likable as they are, which helps mitigate and even sell the absurdity of those moments that will have you screaming “Stay in the car, you idiot!” and “Roll up the [your choice of expletive] window!” Elba, a reliably suave man of action, shrewdly downplays here as a bumbling dad who, brawny frame and medical expertise aside, is no physical match for Pridezilla. That remains true even as things hurtle toward an inevitable mano-a-mane climax, a ludicrous if enjoyable reminder that just because you’ve seen one killer CGI lion, it doesn’t mean you’ve seen them maul.

Rating: R, for violent content, bloody images and some language Running time: 1 hour, 33 minutes Playing: Starts Aug. 19 in general release

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Justin Chang was a film critic for the Los Angeles Times from 2016 to 2024. He won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in criticism for work published in 2023. Chang is the author of the book “FilmCraft: Editing” and serves as chair of the National Society of Film Critics and secretary of the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn.

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Beast brings back the short, sharp, well-crafted creature feature

Idris Elba versus a rogue lion turns out to be one of 2022’s better small-scale showdowns

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by Jesse Hassenger

Early in the man-versus-nature horror movie Beast , one of the characters wears a faux-vintage Jurassic Park T-shirt — a choice that scans as clear homage, from one Universal summer nature-from-hell creature feature to another. Beast even features that classic Jurassic movie trope, a pair of siblings struggling to stay out of view as a large animal circles the vehicle where they’re trapped. But in spite of the parallels, in spite of a surprising level of craft for a late-August release in a summer where an actual Jurassic Park sequel got a prime June slot, Beast ultimately isn’t gunning for status as a Jurassic upstart or companion piece. The movie is assured as it stakes out its own smaller territory.

Beast ’s most noticeable departure from the Jurassic series is its intimacy; only four members of the human cast really register as significant. Nate Samuels (Idris Elba) is a doctor returning to South Africa for a vacation with his daughters Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Jeffries) following the death of the girls’ mother, who was separating from Nate when she got sick. They meet up with Uncle Martin (Sharlto Copley), though his title is an honorific; he’s a friend of the family who now works as an “anti-poacher” on an African preserve, protecting lions and other animals. Martin takes them out to see some lions and visit a local village. They find the village has been torn apart, and soon enough, a single vengeful lion is stalking all of them.

Yes, a vengeful lion. As near as Martin can tell, this lion has “gone rogue” (his words) following the death of his pack. Typically, female lions do the hunting and males protect the pride, but this fearsome beast has moved from protection to sheer revenge. (Call him Lion Neeson.) It’s very much in the tradition of another Spielberg summer creature movie: Like Jaws , Beast heightens basic human fears about a sharp-toothed predator into something impossible, even ridiculous, yet weirdly plausible for most people.

Repeatedly evoking Spielberg doesn’t necessarily do Beast any favors. The film doesn’t have the distinctive characters of Jaws , the stunning effects of Jurassic Park , or the sweaty-palmed, clenched-fist sequences of either movie. (Or for that matter, of The Lost World. ) At the same time, director Baltasar Kormákur, who’s focused his American career on survival stories like Everest and Adrift , obviously put some effort into staging the lion attacks, the downtime in between, and the exposition that leads there.

Kormákur uses long takes — some showy and possibly computer-assisted, but plenty that are more matter-of-fact — to turn the audience into tourists. First we’re following along as the Samuels kids look through Martin’s house and see the South African wilderness for the first time. Later, we’re stuck in their car, or underneath it, as the lion circles, swipes, and gnashes its teeth. The camera keeps catching the lion through windows or in the distance, a second or two before the characters notice. Half the fun of the movie is watching Kormákur move through his limited spaces. It’s a skillful tight-spot thriller.

The camerawork offers stronger human storytelling than the obligatory talk about Nate letting his kids down, or about stepping up mid-crisis to protect them in a way he couldn’t shelter them from their mom’s death. These aren’t the most egregiously shoehorned-in emotions ever seen in a 93-minute survival/creature thriller; Halley and Jeffries have a naturally awkward, believable rapport with their on-screen dad Elba, and they’re all easy to like. Even more surprising: Overactor extraordinaire Sharlto Copley turns in a restrained, no-nonsense performance!

But it’s easy to wonder whether producer Will Packer had a hand in the movie’s family dynamics. Packer-produced comedies like What Men Want and Night School are sometimes marred with teachable-moment piety, and in this case, the lessons are a little cracked. Meredith resents Nate because her mother died of cancer, which spurs him to protect his remaining family at any cost. But is Nate, a doctor who should be familiar with extraordinary life-saving measures and the inevitability of losing some patients, really supposed to learn that it’s his personal responsibility to battle death hand-to-hand? In this context, the standard-issue survival-movie tenacity feels almost like denial, with Nate seeking redemption for something that was truly impossible to control. For a movie addressing the unknowable ferocity of nature, Beast has a daft, even simple-minded conviction about what can keep chaos and murder at bay.

This is a minor complaint for an enjoyably minor movie. For much of its slim running time, Beast does what it’s supposed to do, right down to the buzzy moments of silliness where it bravely, too briefly heads over the top. (Yes, a human challenges a lion to a one-on-one fight.) It even forms an accidental trilogy with two other recent August releases: Prey , Fall , and Beast comprise a miniature revival of the stripped-down, well-crafted thriller, summer movies more like The Shallows or Don’t Breathe (or, reaching further back, Breakdown or Red Eye ) than wannabe blockbusters bloated out to epic length. At a time when Jurassic World keeps trying to expand its reach, here’s another reminder of just how much less can actually look like more.

Beast is now streaming on Peacock Plus .

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‘Beast’: Idris Elba Battles the ‘Cujo’ of Lions

By David Fear

“It’s the law of the jungle,” one character says fairly early on in Beast — “early” as in after we’ve established that a lion decides to become a four-legged vigilante once some poachers slaughter his pride, but before this one-cat army sets his sights on our hero and his family. The way the man inhales and pauses before he delivers the next line suggests he’s about to drop some serious science: “The only law that matters here.” Ah. Ok!

And there is, of course, the Law of Man vs. Nature — can’t forget that ol’ narrative chestnut. It clearly states that, with human beings having transgressed against all creatures great or small for profit or out of malice or simply because Homo sapiens are straight-up a trash species, those creatures have been given license to bite back. Sometimes, a predator is just exercising his or her God-given right to be a predator. ( Jaws gonna Jaws !). And sometimes…well, sometimes, it’s personal.

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You could do worse than handing this assignment to a director like Baltasar Kormákur, who seems to thrive when given stories involving survival ( The Deep, Adrift, Everest ) and men having their mettle tested overall ( Contraband, 2 Guns ). He’s also good at distracting you with technical bells and whistles, as when the party stumbles across an abandoned village that turns out to be a crime scene. His camera doesn’t just record the aftermath of a slaughter; it slithers, creeps, glides, and stalks its way around the carnage in a way that feels downright predatory. Still, transcendental it ain’t. Workmanlike is more like it. If he happens to stumble across a shot that feels poetically pulpy — say, a profile of Elba in full action-hero mode, backlit by a dusky horizon as his leonine executor crouches for an attack — that’s merely a bonus.

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‘Beast’ Review: Idris Elba Fights a Lion in By-the-Numbers Survival Film

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We’ve always liked to watch humanity face off against beasts at the movies, from the early silent monster films like The Golem and The Lost World to our continued interest in monsters like Godzilla and King Kong, decades after their introductions. Hell, Leonardo DiCaprio didn't even get an Oscar until he fought a grizzly bear. There’s something fascinating to us about watching a person clash with a beast and seeing who ends up the victor, as if watching these films is the closest thing we can get to revisiting our brutish origins as a species. It’s this base excitement that director Baltasar Kormákur ( Adrift , Everest ) embraces with Beast , but with characters this dumb, it’s a surprise humans ever made it this far.

In Beast , Idris Elba plays Nate Samuels, a recently widowed doctor who brings his two daughters Meredith ( Iyana Halley ) and Norah ( Leah Sava Jeffries ) to South Africa, where he first met his wife. The trio visits a game reserve watched over by their old family friend Martin ( Sharlto Copley ), who has had to deal with poachers killing lions, with one such incident leaving one sole lion angry and ready to exact revenge on any humans he finds. Naturally, Nate’s family and Martin cross the path of this furious lion, and have to do anything they can to survive this lion’s quest for revenge.

Kormákur films Beast primarily through long takes, not just during lion attacks, but in the quieter moments, as the Samuels family and Martin explore the reserve, Martin’s home, and a nearby village. It’s almost as if Kormákur attempted to make an action-focused story with the least amount of takes possible, and for the most part, it works. These takes lull the viewer into a false sense of security in the first act, before utilizing this technique in longer fights of this family taking on this lion.

RELATED: Idris Elba's Survival Thriller 'Beast' Gets R Rating From MPAA

Yet undercutting this stylistic choice is a script that lacks any real surprises, except for the many ways these characters can put themselves in these awful situations. Written by Ryan Engle ( Rampage , Non-Stop ), Beast ’s screenplay is extremely predictable, as Engle spends the first act basically setting up every tool he’ll use to “surprise” the audience in the third act. There’s nothing wrong with presenting a series of plot points that will pay off in the end, but it also makes this journey feel very obvious every step of the way.

Making matters worse, however, is how stiff and senseless these characters act throughout this harrowing situation. These long cuts allow for some quieter moments in these performances that feel awkward and fake, and the decisions these characters make are hard to rationalize in this story. If there’s a bloodthirsty lion terrorizing your family that is trapped in a car, maybe it’s best to stay away from the sole broken window, and maybe it’s not a great idea to use a walkie-talkie in the middle of the night in an otherwise silent nature preserve—again, especially if a giant, seemingly unstoppable lion wants to claw your family’s necks out.

But even though the directing and writing at times might hold back the performances, this cast does their best in this nightmarish circumstance. Early on in Beast , we discover that Nate left his wife a year before she died, and this remains a point of contention for this trio, even in the most frightening situations. Both Halley and Jeffries play this frustration they have towards their father just the right amount. Halley takes after her mother, and in her performance, we can see the irritation she has for the father that doesn’t support her the way she once was, while Norah—the younger of the two—is both the source of some of the film’s most lighthearted moments.

Elba is best here when he’s tasked with being the action hero of the piece, and in those moments, he plays his battles with the lion in the sort of uncertain and terrified way that one would expect in this scenario. And while Copley is quite good, the heart of Beast is focused on this family, and Copley’s character, unfortunately, becomes more of a narrative device than a full character.

But Beast is at its peak when it’s playing to that interest in watching man versus beast and seeing who comes out the victor. Beast is quieter than the typical action film, yet Beast truly comes to life when the titular beast is stalking its prey, attacking with fury, and putting these characters and the audience in the mindset of “what the hell would you do?” Kormákur’s playing with the silent, quiet moments, mixed with the frenetic and hurried attacks is a jolt of excitement that mostly works throughout. To be fair, Beast is a movie that knows people are coming to see Idris Elba fight a lion, and with that in mind, Beast gives the audience exactly what they want: the voice of Shere Khan fighting sheer terror.

Beast is certainly clunky in its execution at times and these characters might make fairly unbelievable choices, but the core idea of man vs. lion is where this thrives and is at its most interesting. Beast has its flaws and is mostly by-the-numbers, but if the idea of Idris Elba fighting a lion is something that is of interest to you, then Beast is going to deliver.

Beast comes to theaters on August 19.

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Beast review: idris elba leads thin, but entertaining survival thriller.

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Idris Elba has been in a variety of films, but Beast sees him do the unusual by battling a lion. The actor flexes his muscles differently in the run-of-the-mill, yet entertaining, survival thriller. Directed by Baltasar Kormákur from a screenplay by Ryan Engle (who wrote the script based on a story by Jaime Primak Sullivan), Beast doesn't pretend to be something it's not. Supported by a good cast, who make the most of the little they have, the film has enough jump scares, action, and suspense to keep the audience riveted, even if the overall execution doesn't take any risks.

Dr. Nate Samuels (Elba), a medical doctor, has brought his daughters, Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Jeffries) to South Africa for vacation. Nate hopes the trip to their late mother's home country will rejuvenate the strained relationship he has with his daughters. Reuniting with his friend Martin (Sharlto Copley), who manages a game preserve, Nate, Meredith, and Leah explore the wildlife. But it's short-lived when a rogue lion, that is out for revenge on poachers who killed his pride, begins attacking. Stuck with nowhere to go, Nate and his family must find a way to survive.

Related: Beast Ending Explained (In Detail)

Beast makes good use of its jump scares, building intensity through them and the suspense they bring. There's a particular scene in which Nate and Norah are searching for medical supplies, rummaging through cabinets and drawers. As they do so, they continuously pass by the doors they left open behind them. Light is shining through and the suspense is ramped up because it seems as though the lion could come through those very doors at any moment, pouncing when least expected. The scene goes on long enough that audiences will watch with bated breath, just waiting for the other shoe to drop. Beast is littered with such moments, which allows the film to be a fairly decent survival thriller .

In terms of a deeper story, Beast brings personal conflict to the table and attempts to connect all that's happening with Nate and his daughters with the lion attacks. This doesn't always work, but the guilt and anger Nate and Meredith feel, respectively, does raise the stakes, adding a bit more tension to an otherwise thin script. To be sure, their issues could have been fleshed out further, with certain topics and memories being brought up and dropped. But with the focus being so much on the family's survival and Nate specifically being there for his daughters in a way he feels he wasn't before, Beast does just enough to maintain the audience's engagement.

The film's action sequences are staged well, though it remains a by-the-book survival thriller for the most part, not adding anything particularly new or groundbreaking in its execution. Still, the scenes in which Nate is forced to defend himself and his family from the lion are suspenseful, with certain scenes playing out like a first-person shooter video game. This escalates the adrenaline, with the abruptness of some of the lion's attacks horrific enough to terrify the audience and simultaneously root for Nate and his family to survive the ordeal. Beast is also bolstered by Idris Elba and the rest of the cast, who give passionate performances that elevate certain aspects of the surface-level script. Elba's rapport with his onscreen daughters is solid overall, with Sharlto Copley's supporting role conveying the friendship between Nate and Martin without the latter's presence overshadowing the family dynamics driving the narrative.

Though the focus is primarily on the lion's attacks, which leads to a great — if short-lived — final battle, the characters are not sidelined for the main event. Is Beast a memorable film? No, but it has enough, if shallow, story, pulse-pounding intensity, and fight scenes to entertain the audience throughout its brisk runtime. It's an average film that has a bit more meat to it than many survival thrillers, and that is good enough for what it is.

Beast released in theaters on August 19. The film is 93 minutes long and is rated R for violent content, bloody images and some language.

Beast is a survival thriller that stars Idris Elba as Dr. Nate Samuels. He visits Mopani Game Reserve, South Africa, with his two daughters, Noah and Meredith, as he tries to reconcile with the passing of his wife. However, after a reunion with an old friend, Martin, who runs the reserve, things turn for the worst when a series of animal attacks culminate into one lion, which has gone rogue and begins to hunt the family. Faced against unknown assailants, a blood-thirsty lion, and unfamiliar land, the Samuels family will fight to survive against all odds.

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‘Beast’ Review: An Angry Lion, but More Bore Than Roar

In this action dud, Idris Elba plays a grieving father who takes his kids on a family trip to South Africa, where they meet one very big C.G.I. animal.

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By Manohla Dargis

Sometime soon, “Beast” will hit the great streaming graveyard. Say a prayer and move on. By that point, you will have heard that it’s a dud. And while you may be tempted to watch it anyway — it does star Idris Elba — hoping that it’s tasty enough to fire up a bowl, don’t do it. It has a few scattered laughs, some apparently intentional. But this is thin, unimaginative hack work, and it lacks the deranged seriousness and commitment that distinguishes a pleasurable misfire from bland dreck like this. It is, I am sorry to say, no “ Gods of Egypt .”

There’s a story, sure. Elba plays Nate, a doctor who takes his daughters, Norah and Meredith (Leah Jeffries and Iyana Halley), on one of those movieland journeys that turn into an extended, predictably dreary family therapy session. His estranged wife has recently died, and he and the girls are in mourning. So, they have flown to Mom’s home country, South Africa, where they stay with an old friend, Martin (Sharlto Copley). They’re there for restorative healing or something, though given all the dumb, dangerous choices Nate makes, it’s hard to think that his kids’ well-being is uppermost in his mind.

The movie is relatively short, as far as contemporary Hollywood action flicks go, and soon Nate and company are driving and then screaming and running through the scenery without cell service, being chased by a very big, very angry lion. The director Baltasar Kormakur keeps the camera moving and circling, but there’s nothing he can do to animate the story (the script is by Ryan Engle), particularly after the characters crash, becoming stranded in Martin’s truck. In between attacks and roars and screams, blood and feelings flow, and water runs low — the usual. Elba looks and sounds exceedingly bored, and you know how he feels.

One of the best things about contemporary digital wizardry is that wild animals no longer need to be subjected to human cruelty and nonsense in the name of cinema. There are real animals throughout “Beast,” but the lion that chases Nate et al. is obviously a computer creation. It has its reasons for attacking people, as our environmental catastrophe makes clear. Yet while the story repeatedly references poaching, it isn’t really interested in animals, and its truer interests are telegraphed by a character’s “Jurassic Park” T-shirt. I mean, it would be nice if animals were taking their revenge — this movie alone should enrage them.

Beast Rated R for gun violence. Running time: 1 hour 33 minutes. In theaters.

Manohla Dargis has been the co-chief film critic of The Times since 2004. She started writing about movies professionally in 1987 while earning her M.A. in cinema studies at New York University, and her work has been anthologized in several books. More about Manohla Dargis

Beast Review

Man vs. nature vs. lion..

Beast hits theaters on Aug. 19, 2022.

Part survival and part eco-thriller, Baltasar Kormákur’s Beast is the latest film to pit man versus nature. And while that premise alone is far from an original one, what it does have is Idris Elba fighting a homicidal lion – which is argument enough to get most people to see it at least once. Despite a stellar performance from Elba, a straightforward and extremely predictable plot makes this a film that will likely end up being a one and done for both movie buffs and fans of the British actor.

Beast follows Dr. Nate Samuels (Elba) and his two daughters, Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Sava Jeffries), as they travel to South Africa for an extended trip to visit their late mom’s home. What should be a fun vacation soon turns deadly, as the trio find themselves being hunted by a giant lion that is killing any human crossing his path.

That simple premise lacks ambition, which is not, on its own, a bad thing. It’s all about surviving the encounter by any means, building tension with the characters’ limited supplies and no way to radio for help. Still, that tension is undermined by its predictability; I could guess what would happen in each scene after the lion was introduced. Beast, in short, doesn’t take a lot of risks. Still, it helps that it’s grounded in realism; the idea of visiting South Africa and encountering a giant lion is terrifying, after all, and it sure would activate my fight or flight. Considering that intriguing idea, it’s disappointing that Beast, in its execution, does little to move the needle for the eco-thriller subgenre.

The pacing, at least, is solid. Not one scene felt like it overstayed its welcome, and you luckily don’t have to wait too long to see the lion itself. However, its slim 93-minute runtime isn’t always a good thing, as certain aspects of Beast could’ve benefited from expansion. In particular, we know the death of the Samuels’ matriarch had a massive impact on both the family and the events of the film, but we don’t get a ton of backstory on her other than the basics that help move the plot needle forward in the broadest of fashions. There are no scenes – not even flashbacks – with the wife and mother before her death, while it is clear the family misses her immensely. There are certainly hints that Elba’s character had a strained relationship with her before she passed, but we don’t see any of that on-screen. Instead, it’s delivered in a few dialogue exchanges that provide a little context but not enough to make anyone really care for this grieving family. Even just a flashback or two would have gone a long way for emotional investment in the story.

Of course, most people watching Beast are likely watching it for Elba, who delivers a phenomenal performance, stealing the scene every time. Dr. Samuels is a grieving father trying to bond with his daughters and clearly holds a lot of regret for how his relationship with his wife was before her death. Elba does a superb job in both portraying the grieving widow and squaring off against the lion; he’s never made to be some type of superhuman that gets a lucky swing, and his character takes a good beating in almost every encounter with the animal. Since the movie is quick to establish Dr. Samuels’ survival instincts and quick-thinking, every action sequence between these two is believable.

Elba’s isn’t the only impressive performance, though. As Martin Battles, a park ranger and childhood friend of the Samuels’ matriarch who serves as a tour guide as the family ventures across South Africa early on in the film, Sharlto Copley matches Elba in being surprisingly committed to the B-movie premise. Plus, Martin is able to add a contrast to Dr. Samuels, as he’s knowledgeable about the country’s wildlife and the dangers they face when this lion crosses their path.

Which animal would be the worst to square off against?

The realism of being stranded in South African wildlife, filled with poachers and a homicidal lion, is certainly an idea that comes with a lot of inherent suspense, but that’s not to say Beast is a movie that innovates the survival genre… because it doesn’t. While Idris Elba and Sharlto Copley deliver great performances, Beast is too predictable and simple to go down as a classic, or even a great entry in the genre. Nevertheless, if you’re an Idris Elba fanatic, it’s worth a watch at least once, if only for his commitment to the premise.

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Common Sense Media Review

Father-daughter survival story is intense, bloody, violent.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Beast is an action survival thriller about a grieving father (Idris Elba) who must keep his two teen daughters safe from a bloodthirsty lion while on a trip to South Africa. Like other humans-vs.-beast movies ( The Grey , Jurassic Park , Jaws , The Edge

Why Age 15+?

Several jump-worthy/frightening sequences when the lion appears out of nowhere,

Infrequent use of "damn," "hell," "stupid," "liar."

Nikon camera, iPad, Motorola, Jurassic Park tank top, Fjällräven backpack, all-t

Martin and Nate have drinks (and seem tipsy) at dinner.

Emotional, romantic dreams where Nate looks for and eventually finds his wife.

Any Positive Content?

Lots of violence, but also themes of wildlife conservation, honesty, communicati

Martin and Nate are both brave in the face of danger. Martin is an expert in the

Majority of cast is Black -- both American and South African -- with exception o

Violence & Scariness

Several jump-worthy/frightening sequences when the lion appears out of nowhere, ready to kill any human in his path. Many characters die, most of them off camera, but lots of dead and dying bodies are visible, almost all with bloody wounds and some gore. The lion is often shown with a bloody mane/jaw; his mauling attacks nearly always kill, but a few times characters are moderately to severely injured. One character dies in a fire. To survive, the humans must kick, punch, and use weapons (knife, dart gun, gun) on the lion, who survives many different forms of injury. Characters mourn the loss of a wife/mother, who died of a terminal illness before the movie's story begins.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

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Nikon camera, iPad, Motorola, Jurassic Park tank top, Fjällräven backpack, all-terrain Toyota SUV.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Lots of violence, but also themes of wildlife conservation, honesty, communication, and teamwork -- not to mention survival and emergency skills.

Positive Role Models

Martin and Nate are both brave in the face of danger. Martin is an expert in the wildlife and landscape, Nate is a doctor with trauma medicine skills. Mer and Nora summon their courage to help each other, their dad, and their uncle. They rise to the occasion and prove that people without formal training can be helpful in emergency situations.

Diverse Representations

Majority of cast is Black -- both American and South African -- with exception of a major character who's a White South African. Teen girls act courageously to stay alive and help their father and uncle.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Parents need to know that Beast is an action survival thriller about a grieving father ( Idris Elba ) who must keep his two teen daughters safe from a bloodthirsty lion while on a trip to South Africa. Like other humans-vs.-beast movies ( The Grey , Jurassic Park , Jaws , The Edge ), the story centers on how an individual (in this case, Elba's widower doctor) must summon his resources and strengths (including his daughters) to stay alive. Expect scenes of intense violence, some with blood and occasionally featuring gore. There are also jump scares and weapons-based interactions, both between humans and between humans and the lion. There are many deaths, and dead and severely injured bodies are visible throughout the movie, with even more deaths happening off camera. The lion is frightening and often sports a bloody mouth/jaw. Although the movie is very violent, there are also clear themes about the importance of wildlife conservation, honesty, communication, and teamwork -- not to mention survival and emergency skills. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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• Parents say (4)
• Kids say (16)

Based on 4 parent reviews

Monster action movie in the tradition of Jaws

Won't give this one a second watch., what's the story.

In BEAST, recently widowed dad Dr. Nate Daniels ( Idris Elba ) takes his two teen daughters, Meredith "Mer" (Iyana Halley) and Nora (Leah Jeffries), to their late mother's village in South Africa. That's where their close family friend, wildlife biologist Martin ( Sharlto Copley ), manages a game reserve. The grieving family's trip turns deadly when Martin drives them to the tiny village adjacent to the reserve and discovers that everyone has been killed in a lion attack. Soon the lion, whose entire pride was destroyed by poachers, attacks, forcing an out-of-his depth Nate to step up in order to keep his daughters safe. Without mobile service or a drivable truck, the trio must use their wits and limited resources to outsmart the bloodthirsty lion that's out for revenge.

Is It Any Good?

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.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the violence and bloody images in Beast . Why are (or aren't) they necessary to tell the story?

Does the movie portray the lion as worthy of sympathy? Why, or why not? How does this tie into its messages about poaching vs. conservation?

Which of the characters do you consider to be role models? What character strengths do they display?

Why do you think survival thrillers like this one are consistently popular? How does Beast compare to other similar movies?

What do you think you would do in a similar situation?

Movie Details

• In theaters : August 19, 2022
• On DVD or streaming : September 8, 2022
• Cast : Idris Elba , Sharlto Copley , Iyana Halley
• Director : Baltasar Kormakur
• Inclusion Information : Black actors, Female actors
• Studio : Universal Pictures
• Genre : Action/Adventure
• Topics : Adventures , Brothers and Sisters , Wild Animals
• Character Strengths : Courage , Perseverance
• Run time : 93 minutes
• MPAA rating : R
• MPAA explanation : violent content, bloody images and some language
• Last updated : July 31, 2024

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Beast review: Idris Elba vs a lion is the apex of low-expectation cinema

It’s impossible to argue that ‘beast’ doesn’t live up to its promise, because the only promise was another piece of recyclable pop-culture imagery, article bookmarked.

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Dir: Baltasar Kormákur. Starring: Idris Elba, Iyana Halley, Leah Sava Jeffries, Sharlto Copley. 15, 93 minutes.

A shot of Idris Elba socking a lion in the face isn’t just the dramatic denouement of Beast – it’s the film’s entire raison d’etre. No one’s here for the scenes of Elba’s well-intentioned patriarch attempting to heal his fractured family, or the vague sentiments about nature’s karmic vengeance. Audiences will turn up because a trailer promised to show them one of our most charismatic A-listers in a boxing match with a roided-out kitty cat. Everything that comes before is just the warm-up for the main event.

In that sense, it’s impossible to argue that Beast doesn’t live up to its promise, because the only promise was another piece of recyclable pop-culture imagery. Beast is the latest entry in the man vs arbitrary animal Hall of Fame, filed right next to Samuel L Jackson getting shark-chomped in Deep Blue Sea (1999) and Liam Neeson charging headfirst at the alpha wolf in The Grey (2011). As for the rest of Baltasar Kormakur’s film, it at least doesn’t test its audience’s patience, establishing the Icelandic director – behind survival dramas The Deep (2012), Adrift (2018), and Everest (2015) – as exactly the steady hand needed for to deliver this brand of disposable, B-movie thrills. Beast represents the apex of low-expectation cinema.

Elba’s Dr Nate Samuels has brought his two daughters, Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Sava Jeffries), to visit the South African village where their recently deceased mother grew up – the same place she and Nate first met, through mutual friend and park ranger Martin Battles (Sharlto Copley). Meredith is an especially embittered sort. Though her parents separated before her mother was diagnosed with cancer, she doesn’t feel like Nate ever did enough to support them, and neither has he shown sufficient interest in her nascent photography career. And what will better make this trio reconsider the bonds of family than an errant male lion who, after his entire pride is killed by poachers, vows (presumably, he can’t talk) to enact single-minded revenge against the entire human race?

It’s not all that thrilling to watch a premise like this unravel, since there’s no doubt about who will be punished, who will live to tell the tale, and what the antagonist’s Achilles heel will prove to be. After all, there’s only so much of a threat that a large feline can pose to a group of people who have a reinforced jeep with lockable doors. As if to compensate, Ryan Engle’s screenplay continually demeans the intelligence of his own characters in order to protract the drama. They shout. They split up. They leave the car windows open. It’s inexplicable.

But Kormakur knows how to make these movies move, and has smartly employed the aid of Oscar-winning cinematographer Philippe Rousselot, whose credits include Interview with the Vampire (1994) and Dangerous Liaisons (1988), to add some slick, visual flair to the non-stop mauling. Rousselot’s camera takes on the same prowling quality of the film’s central predator, in long, unbroken shots that wind through massacre sites and crocodile-infested waters. The lion itself, a fully CGI creation, never looks convincing – but that may not even be the point.

With his ratty, bloodied coat of fur and a deep scar carved into his snout, he’s animated more to look like the kind of John Wick-like assassin Elba might normally go toe-to-toe with, rather than anything David Attenborough would narrate over. Realism has no worth in a film this silly. So why not have a leonine antagonist that is introduced with the line, “they killed his pride… now he’s coming after us”?

‘Beast’ is in cinemas from 26 August

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Beast Review

26 Aug 2022

Beast (2022)

In Beast , one character briefly wears a Jurassic Park T-shirt. Sure enough, this film about a family on a safari-gone-wrong starts with ooohs and aaahs, and sure enough, later there’s running and screaming. It’s a neat wink-and-a-nod to the audience of the kind of movie to expect — but if anything, the Spielberg film it most closely resembles is Jaws : replace the shark with a vengeful lion, ditch Quint, and you’re not far off.

Putting in the kind of gruffly amiable performance that has become his speciality, Idris Elba plays the good-hearted but emotionally troubled Chief Brody-type, a widower who worries for his two emotionally distant teenage children. A trip to the South African homeland of his late estranged wife, he hopes, will bridge the gap between them. Sharlto Copley is the Hooper-esque game warden who takes them on a private tour of the reserve.

Kormákur and cinematographer Philippe Rousselot make effective use of a series of ‘oners’, ambitious unbroken takes with the camera right up in everyone’s grill

Naturally, things don’t go according to plan, and when poachers attack one pride of lions, a male seeks bloody revenge. As carefully over-explained in expository dialogue, female lions are the hunters; male lions are only there to protect the pride. It’s a nice, lean genre set-up: a “rogue lion”, as Copley’s character puts it, out for vengeance, and in a loose parallel, Elba’s father character looking to protect his own clan.

But — much like in Jaws  — disaster specialist Baltasar Kormákur ( Everest , Adrift ) is relatively sparing with his apex predator. Impressively rendered via CGI — think the Lion King remake, with less dead-eyed singing — the lion attacks happen off-screen as much as they do on-screen, a phantom menace stalking the bushlands. For each of their set-pieces, Kormákur and cinematographer Philippe Rousselot make effective use of a series of ‘oners’, ambitious unbroken takes with the camera right up in everyone’s grill, which lends the action a nice tension and theatricality.

The plot sails along pretty much exactly as you might expect, with few surprises and a final showdown that is occasionally quite silly — yes, as promised in the trailer, Idris Elba really does straight-up punch a lion in the face — but as far as trashy blockbuster entertainment goes, this is uncomplicatedly fun and, at 93 minutes, doesn’t hang around longer than needed. As Quint might have put it: “This lion... swallow you whole.”

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Movies | 25 05 2022

Doctor Who: The Star Beast Review | David Tennant and Catherine Tate Return in Enthralling New Special

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• Doctor Who fans are in for a treat with the return of legendary writer Russell T. Davies, three specials for the show's 60th anniversary, and the debut of Ncuti Gatwa as the 14th Doctor.
• "The Star Beast" special delivers a thrilling and action-packed episode that takes fans back to the golden years of Doctor Who . It features flawless performances, satisfying character moments, and impeccable production design.
• The return of David Tennant and Catherine Tate adds excitement to the 60th-anniversary specials. Tennant's energetic and entertaining performance as the 10th Doctor is a joy to watch, while Tate shines in her reunion as the witty and inspiring Donna Noble.

2023 is a fantastic year to be a Doctor Who fan. Not only is legendary Doctor Who writer and showrunner Russell T. Davies returning to the series, but we also get treated to three specials in honor of the show's 60th anniversary, starring the 10th Doctor and his beloved companion , Donna Noble, which, of course, sees the return of David Tennant and the amazing Catherine Tate in their seminal roles. This, however, is all before Ncuti Gatwa makes his debut as the 14th Doctor, to reinvent the show for a new generation. Doctor Who fans are eating phenomenally well this year.

Bridging the gap between Jodie Whitaker's run as the 13th Doctor, and Ncuti Gatwa's debut as the 14th, David Tennant, and Catherine Tate return to the series with three exciting specials. The first of which, "The Star Beast," offers a breathtaking return to the show, with an episode that takes us back to the good old days of Doctor Who . David Tennant and Catherine Tate effortlessly fall back into their roles, with Davies immersing audiences into a thrilling, action-packed, and hilarious adventure with his flawless script. It's full of satisfying character moments, impeccable production design, and a fascinating antagonist .

The special answers many long-standing questions and presents a plethora of new ones while we anxiously anticipate Ncuti Gatwa's debut. Getting us seething with excitement for the final two specials, "The Star Beast" is a magical experience for Doctor Who fans that cannot be understated.

The Golden Age of Doctor Who

Originally premiered in 1963, Doctor Who is a sci-fi series that follows a powerful being known as a Time Lord, referred to as the Doctor. Using an interdimensional time-traveling ship known as the TARDIS, the Doctor travels time and space with various companions as they solve multiple problems and help avert catastrophe as much as they almost cause it. Though the Doctor is always the same character, they experience regenerations, allowing them to be recast every few seasons as a unique immortal being with new personality traits.

After a brief catch-up on the history between the 10th Doctor (David Tennant) and Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), audiences are hurled into a lively part of London where the 14th Doctor, sporting a recognizable face from a past regeneration, immediately finds himself bumping into Donna Noble within seconds of landing on Earth. There, after a brief conversation with the Doctor continually staring at Donna in disbelief, a mysterious spaceship crash lands on the other side of London.

The Doctor quickly rushes to the ship's wreckage to find an abandoned and beaten-up spaceship, with no sign of life. Meanwhile, Donna is met by the adorable alien species known only as The Meep, in her own home. With an intergalactic war on the way, The Doctor must return The Meep back to his spaceship before London is left in a fiery ruin. However, if Donna remembers her past with the Doctor, her life may be at risk.

Based on a story from a 1980 Doctor Who comic strip written by Pat Mills and Dave Gibbs, "The Star Beast" is one of the best Doctor Who specials in years. Sure, that's not really saying much, but with an expertly crafted script, flawless performances, and immersive production design on a scale we haven't quite seen before, fans are treated to a special that seamlessly takes us back to 2008: The Golden Years of Doctor Who .

Doctor Who Reaches New Heights

Russell T. Davies presents a script full of action, shocking twists, rip-roaring humor, and important themes revolving around gender identity. Davies tackles these themes with delicacy and levity, leading to many emotional and important character moments, which are soon paralleled with some brilliant moments of humor. "The Star Beast" offers a brilliant set-up for the 14th Doctor's future, and gets us incredibly excited about the rest of the 60th anniversary specials.

"The Star Beast" boasts some of the best production design that Doctor Who has seen in years. The imaginative design of its creatures, costumes, and space-shop will have audiences fully enthralled by this exceptional Doctor Who special. Likewise, "The Star Beast" deserves much praise for its action. Full of explosions, gunfire, and extraterrestrial carnage, the combination of well-shot, well-directed action with a blood-pumping score to boot creates thrilling action scenes the likes of which Doctor Who has been missing for a while.

Doctor Who: The 10th Doctor's 10 Most Underrated Episodes

The 10th Doctor, played by David Tennant, has starred in some of the best episodes of Doctor Who. Here are some of his most underrated episodes.

The Return of David Tennant and Catherine Tate

What will certainly get most fans talking, and has done ever since it was announced, is the return of David Tennant and Catherine Tate. Tennant is an absolute joy to watch on-screen. His giddy, childish, yet wise take on the character once again cements the fact that he is among the best to ever play the Doctor . Whether he's in shock, excitement, or brainstorming his next plan, David Tennant oozes with buckets of energy, enthralling audiences with his endlessly entertaining performance.

These 60th-anniversary specials aren't actually David Tennant's first time back in the role. In fact, 10 years ago, for the show's 50th anniversary special, "The Day of the Doctor," Tennant starred alongside Matt Smith and John Hurt for an awe-inspiring special like no other. However, unlike Tennant, Catherine Tate hasn't reprised her role before. After a 15-year hiatus from the franchise, Catherine Tate returns to her no-nonsense, wise-cracking, and inspiring role as Donna Noble, one of the Doctor's best-ever companions. Tate returns with her exceptional comic timing, cracking audiences up with every line of intended dialogue, and draws audiences in with her emotionally nuanced performance that delves into Donna's trauma. An aspect of her performance from the fourth season that was often overlooked.

Doctor Who: The 10th Doctor's Best Episodes, Ranked

David Tennant's tenure as the Doctor led to many great episodes, and here are some of the best in the Doctor Who world.

Although the biggest praise has to be given to Tennant and Tate's return, one of the best performances of the special came from Jacqueline King as Sylvia Noble, Donna Nobles' mom. Often stealing the show, King's line delivery, and comic timing are on point, constantly leaving audiences belly laughing, and finally falling in love with her otherwise overbearing, but loving character. Additionally, making her debut in the show is Yasmin Finney, offering a confident and captivating performance as Rose, leaving audiences no choice but to fall in love with her character.

"The Star Beast" begins streaming internationally on Disney+ on November 25th, and airs at 6:30 pm on the BBC for UK viewers on the same day. If you fancy more Doctor Who goodness in the meantime, check out the short 14th Doctor prologue entitled "The Fourteenth Doctor is Here." You can watch the trailer for the special below:

‘Apartment 7A’ Review: The ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ Prequel Is Entertaining, if Often Self-Defeating

The Paramount+ streaming entry plays in a familiar sandbox, but tires to pave its own path on occasion.

By Siddhant Adlakha

Siddhant Adlakha

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Natalie Erika James ‘ “ Apartment 7A ” is at once a prequel to “Rosemary’s Baby” — the book by Ira Levin and the film by Roman Polanski — and the latest entry in Hollywood’s new wave of pregnancy horror, born in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s 2022 repealing. Other examples from this year include “Immaculate” and “The First Omen” (the latter also being a prequel), but James’ mostly-solid film more succinctly captures the anxieties of the current moment.

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That said, the film, like Terry, is also destined for pre-ordained tragedy, given the movie’s prequel status. This leaves it occasionally trapped between highly original flourishes — like visions of a bedazzled Satan, representing the allure of stardom — and re-treads of existing imagery, like blurry nightmares and visions that combine the real and the imagined. James, however, works quite well within these confines. “Apartment 7A” never induces the kind of paranoia that Polanski did about what’s truly going on, but the audience this time around enters with a set of expectations that would render such questions moot. Instead, the fears that grip Terry are far more overt, and they offer Garner the chance to playfully expand on a bit part in intriguing ways, as a woman beaten down by forces beyond her control.

However, the movie’s secret weapon is Wiest, whose approach to Minnie involves a major departure from actor Ruth Gordon. While McNally plays Roman with the same straightforward, personable demeanor as the original’s Sidney Blackmer, Wiest swings for the fences with a cartoonish shrillness that’s initially grating but is also befitting of a nosey neighbor. However, when she reveals more sinister layers to Minnie, her decisions yield a wonderfully loopy tonal disconnect that’s simultaneously at odds with the other actors (and the film at large) as well as deeply unsettling.

Sadly, little else in “Apartment 7A” matches the visceral impact Wiest provides. Terry’s injuries seem, at first, like they might set up exactly such a throughline, thanks to James’ unsettling closeups of blisters and scars. But this effect is soon discarded and doesn’t even return when the movie centers Terry’s pregnancy. That she’s usually in physical anguish is something Garner plays well, but it’s also something the camera captures from afar. The film breaks into formal subjectivity during dreams and visions, but seldom does this during Terry’s waking moments.

The aesthetic approach to the Bramford is also self-defeating. Along with the film’s very title — “Apartment 7A,” the Castevets’ address — the gaslight wash applied to the building’s hallways seems to color it as some inherently evil space, like the hotel from “The Shining,” even though little in the actual films supports this, including its performances. It’s all but a filter haphazardly applied, working counter to the supposedly welcoming environment the Castevets try to create for Terry before subverting it. This leaves no potential for stylistic metamorphosis as the movie progresses and thus little room for visual surprise. Still, as a modern take on a nearly 60-year-old story, “Apartment 7A” is not altogether unnecessary and makes for a decently engaging time.

Reviewed online, Sept. 20, 2024. In Fantastic Fest. Running time: 104 MIN.

• Production: A Paramount+ presentation in association with Paramount Pictures of a Paramount Players, Sunday Night Prod., Platinum Dunes production. Producers: John Krasinski, Allyson Seeger, Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller. Executive producers: Vicki Dee Rock, Alexa Ginsburg.
• Crew: Director: Natalie Erika James. Screenplay: Natalie Erika James & Christian White, Skylar James; story: Skylar James, based on the novel by Ira Levin. Camera: Arnau Valls Colomer. Editing: Andy Canny. Music: Adam Price.
• With: Julia Garner, Dianne Wiest, Jim Sturgess, Kevin McNally, Marli Siu, Andrew Buchan, Rosy McEwen, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith.

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The launching pad for Bertrand Bonello ’s new picture “The Beast” (“La Bete”) is a 1903 short story by Henry James called “The Beast in the Jungle.” Seen by some James scholars as an autobiographical expression of rue for a life of inaction, it treats the case of John Marcher, who confides in his acquaintance May Bartram that he lives in fear of an unnamable catastrophe that could upend his life, and the life of anyone close to him. She claims to get what he’s talking about.

“‘You mean you feel how my obsession — poor old thing — may correspond to some possible reality?’

‘To some possible reality.’

‘Then you will watch with me?’”

And so May does. And Marcher’s fear translates into a passivity that compels him to hold May at arm’s length for the rest of his life. At the end of the story, he mourns a love he never allowed himself to have and understands that the catastrophe was his own fear.

In Bonello’s film, the fear belongs to the popular Parisian concert pianist Gabrielle Monnier ( Lea Seydoux ), who, around the time of the great 1910 flood of France’s City of Lights, confesses this fear to Louis ( George MacKay ), a young Englishman with whom she soon begins a tentative liaison. But the trouble they encounter has nothing to do with Gabrielle’s reticence to enter into a romantic relationship with Louis—although that does exist.

Bonello’s not here to tell us that the only thing to fear is fear itself. He’s here to tell us to be afraid—be very afraid. What he delivers is not just a densely packed art movie but the most potent horror picture of the decade so far. A vision of three (actually four) nightmare times, all of them in the same vexed world.

The cataclysms that fall upon Gabrielle—played by a superbly controlled and often heartbreaking Lea Seydoux—aren’t spiritual or conceptual (well, of course, at first, they are), they’re “real,” or Real. They’re corporeal/physical, or simulations of the corporeal physical. And they’re unavoidable. Boy oh boy can you not stop what’s coming. Close that browser window, rewind that video, press mute on the sound system, reset the house alarm, none of it will do you any good. Not even an alteration in the fabric of reality itself—and this seems to occur at least a half dozen times in the picture—will stave off horror. The beast isn’t in the jungle, it’s in the house, and it’s in the air we can only barely breathe when the movie gets to 2044. It is in us; it is us.

Sounds cheerful, right? Well, what can I tell you? Bonello has a way of throwing us into an enhanced vision of the degrading noise of contemporary life that’s all the more engaging for being so even-handed and deliberate. I mentioned three timelines that are actually four—the movie is framed, kind of, by a green-screen session in which Seydoux, possibly playing Gabrielle, possibly playing herself, is coached through paces for a scene in which she actually apprehends “the beast” and lets out a blood-curdling scream. The image degenerates into a gorgeous abstract mural of pixels. Digitization is here both a source of ravishing sights and sounds and an Excedrin headache of aural and visual glitch. The movie then bounces through three time periods: 1910, 2044—where Gabrielle’s character seeks to abolish her reincarnation torment through a “DNA purge”—and most terrifyingly, 2014, wherein “Gabby” is housesitting in L.A. and targeted by the angry incel version of MacKay’s Louis—Louis Lewansky, who’s 30 and never been with a woman despite his “magnificence,” and who’s now getting ready to avenge himself.

Dolls are a recurring motif here—there are old-fashioned ones made for fans of the pianist Gabby, and unhelpful talking doll in the Hollywood house, and a walking, talking A.I. helper (played by Guslagie Malanda , as impressive here in a relatively small role as she was in the lead of 2022’s “ Saint Omer ”). An electrical fire figures in the 1910 sequence; a malware attack on a laptop is one of the insane blowups in the 2014 scenario. There are bits and pieces here that feel Lynchian, especially in the Los Angeles scenes, during which Gabrielle is fascinated/repulsed by a TV singing contest show that feels like it might have sprung full blown from the creator of “Twin Peaks.” Then there’s the fact that the love song recurring throughout shows up at the very end, sung in its original version by, well Roy Orbison. But unlike Lynch, Bonello has a decidedly un-obscure point to make. Mainly about how the pursuit of the authentic in life is invariably thwarted by roadblocks of humanity’s own making. (Although one supposes that the eighth episode of the 2018 “Twin Peaks” season treated that theme in a relatively unambiguous way.)

“There must be beautiful things in this chaos,” Gabrielle tries to reassure the movie’s scariest version of Louis at one point. Bonello, and this movie’s, greatest dread is that someday a terrible order will emerge, one that will make whatever beauty remains disappear. 

Glenn Kenny

Glenn Kenny was the chief film critic of Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence. He has written for a host of other publications and resides in Brooklyn. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

• Léa Seydoux as Gabrielle
• George MacKay as Louis
• Kester Lovelace as Tom
• Julia Faure as Sophie
• Guslagie Malanda as Poupée Kelly
• Dasha Nekrasova as Dakota
• Martin Scali as Georges
• Elina Löwensohn as La voyante
• Marta Hoskins as Gina
• Félicien Pinot as Augustin
• Laurent Lacotte as L'architecte
• Xavier Dolan as Interviewer (voice)
• Bertrand Bonello
• Guillaume Bréaud

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Beauty Is a Beast in LA-Set ‘The Substance’

Please try again

A drop, a drip, a splash, a geyser. For a while, the procession and progression of blood in The Substance is deliberate and measured, and done with purpose. But subtlety isn’t French writer-director Coralie Fargeat’s strong suit, and restraint isn’t a hallmark of shock cinema.

Consequently, The Substance goes off the rails long before Fargeat spins the spigot and drenches the audience in a climactic deluge of crimson. Intended as satire, the movie is off-putting; as social commentary, it’s incoherent; and as a feminist statement, it reeks of vicious self-loathing.

The Substance and its gorgeous cipher of a protagonist, Elisabeth Sparkle (played by Demi Moore), are driven by The Twilight Zone notion that the fountain of youth is available via an injectable, under-the-counter formula. On the back side of a primetime career that garnered her a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Elisabeth is susceptible to a plug for “the substance” (as it’s called) after she’s fired from her daytime-TV exercise program by the network chief (Dennis Quaid, in a grotesquely cartoonish caricature of a leering entertainment exec).

On paper and in theory, the desire for a brand-new 20-something body and wrinkle-free face may seem self-evident and universal. In a world where Botox, plastic surgery and Ozempic are pervasive and routine, the substance would seem to be just one step further. After all, women have always had to suffer to be beautiful. Corsets and girdles have simply been supplanted by better living through chemistry.

But if we are expected to empathize with a flesh-and-blood movie character, we need more. Does Elisabeth crave the work or the fame? Is she afraid that this is the end of her career, and her worth? She didn’t get that star for her looks or her exercise show, so at one time she was an excellent, or popular, actress (even if the only framed piece hanging in her apartment isn’t a movie poster but a portrait of her workout persona). It’s illogical, and anachronistic, that she isn’t being offered roles. (For the record, Moore is 62 and works steadily.)

Yet Elisabeth is barely given a moment of self-doubt or self-reflection, and from all appearances has no friends or agent to confide in and commiserate with. Fargeat’s decision to omit backstory and flesh out the character isn’t a streamlining timesaver — The Substance clocks in at two and a quarter hours — but a calculation that deprives Elisabeth of any internal life. She is the embodiment of “beauty is skin deep,” and it’s not an attractive quality.

The substance, for better and worse, doesn’t rejuvenate Elisabeth’s physique. (Imagine the crazy explanation you’d have to concoct if you showed up one day looking 25 years younger.) Instead, her back splits open and Sue, a fully formed person (Margaret Qualley of Maid ), emerges. Fargeat revels in delivering an especially horrific “birth” scene, raw with bewilderment, pain and scars.

The movie’s sets — spotless high-rise bathrooms and TV studios and hallways — largely consist of pristine blocks of primary colors. Eye-catching in their own right, they are designed to display the discharges of the female body for maximum grossness and, especially, shame.

Naturally, the substance comes with procedures and side effects. Elisabeth and Sue share an existence in which they absolutely, positively must “switch” every week. So Sue goes on auditions and acquires a boy toy while Elisabeth is comatose on the bathroom floor. The next week, Elisabeth lounges at home looking out her floor-to-ceiling windows at Los Angeles — and the massive billboard of Sue in a leotard after she is cast, much too conveniently, as the new centerpiece of that daily TV exercise show.

Elisabeth awakens every other week to a mess of empty liquor bottles, the scent of consummated passion and that damn billboard, kindling a fierce jealousy of the life her doppelgänger is enjoying. So she devises a form of payback. Unfortunately, The Substance misses the opportunity for a blackly hilarious duel between bad roommates — Fargeat’s sense of humor veers toward the cruel rather than the comic — and accelerates into the horrible consequences of violating the substance’s protocols.

The dynamic between Sue and Elisabeth devolves into that of a rebellious, full-of-life teenager and a wise-but-frustrated mother. No laughs to be had there, that’s for sure. But instead of heart-wrenching domestic drama, imagine that relationship as a bare knuckle, Grand Guignol cage match (where the cage is a multimillion-dollar condo).

By this point, it’s clear that The Substance isn’t critiquing the male gaze, or the importance (and shallowness) of physical appearance in society, or even the exploitation of youth and beauty by the media, advertisers and corporations. Men in positions of authority, the presumed targets of the revenge we have been anticipating for most of the movie, turn out to be, surprisingly, ancillary players.

In lieu of the satisfying catharsis implicit in that payback scenario — payback for the suffering women endured — The Substance smashes us with something far more disturbing. Sue and Elisabeth’s knock-down-drag-out showdown is a visceral depiction of the rivalry and competition between women. Ah, but Fargeat has an even uglier reality she wants us to confront: women’s fear of aging, exemplified by the loss of beauty.

We’ve finally reached the nasty heart of The Substance . Given the film’s erratic execution, the reaction of female audiences may prove to be its most illuminating element. I expect the response to Sue and Elisabeth — which character women identify and sympathize with more — will correlate with the viewer’s age.

Along with the obvious differences in perspectives on beauty and mortality, I’m thinking of the tolerance for watching violence, and particularly woman-on-woman violence. Be advised Fargeat does not pull any punches.

For all the blood showered on the audience, The Substance doesn’t affect us through its characterizations or performances. Nonetheless, be prepared the next time you look in the mirror.

‘The Substance’ is in theaters Friday, Sept. 20, 2024.

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