Beast Is a Lean, Tight Survival Thriller That Doesn’t Reinvent Any Wheels

A good constant-pressure, mile-a-minute-danger thriller is always welcome, and it’s an approach to plotting that works well in a variety of genres from the dramatic tension of Uncut Gems to the sci-fi-horror stylings of Underwater. Beast is another film in that tradition, a tight 90-minute thriller about a family in jeopardy against a natural force that’s out for blood. It’s a film that doesn’t reinvent the wheel (and at times is a little too simple), but it’s a decent survival thriller upheld by a talented set of performers, easily worth the time of any audience who wants a tight thrill ride in a lean theatrical package.

Idris Elba plays Dr. Nate Daniels, a man who takes his daughters Meredith (Iyana Halley) and Norah (Leah Jeffries) on a trip into the heart of Africa to bond and reconnect following the tragic death of his ex-wife/their mother. He meets up with friend Martin Battles (Sharlto Copley), a ranger who protects animals from poachers. They soon find themselves in the terrain of a rogue lion, a vicious, smart predator whose pride have been killed by poachers, and it’s mercilessly hunting every human it comes in contact with, and Nathan has to find some way to save his daughters.

Beast is a simple film. It’s a tight 90-minute outing with a decidedly singular plot, and just enough backstory to ground the emotional drama of the family. The film moves at a quick pace, amplified by Baltasar Breki’s camera work—we follow the family close in a series of long takes and simulated one-shots, wrapping around corners and weaving in and out as the characters do. It adds tension well while controlling our perspective, although it is persistent enough to draw audience attention to the camera work in an occasionally undesirable way.

It’s really nice here to see Copley play a heroic character, and he lands the tough-but-kind vibes of a poacher-antagonist well. The emotional core of the film, of course, are the Daniels family. Idris is, as always, a solid performer here, playing the character with a man-in-danger stoicism that fits the set-up. The true MVPs of the film, however, are the young actresses who play the daughters, Halley and Jeffries. The pair’s interactions bring the emotional depth, and they have such a lived-in charisma in their exchanges that it really sells the family-with-a-tragic-past center of the film.

At some level, a little more emotional depth from Idris, a little longer and deeper Act I would have added layers to the film. Its simplicity is good from a tension standpoint, but there are opportunities for more weight that aren’t taken. Additionally, the daughters’ character choices add danger in certain moments but they don’t always make sense. Yes, children and teenagers make choices in real life that aren’t intuitive, but on occasion it feels like a contrived way to wring out more tension. The ending is also strong overall but it’s a little unrealistic that certain characters survive, to put it vaguely. Finally, as noted the camera work was strong in many scenes and moments but could have drawn a little less attention to itself and it would have served the film.

These criticisms aside, Beast is a tight thriller about a family in danger, and its simplicity overall works well. It breezes by, keeps you engaged, and grounds you in the family. It isn’t a film with layers, elaborate plot shenanigans, or thematic complexity, it’s about survival plain and simple, and it puts you on the family’s train to danger town for most of its thin runtime. If what you’re looking for is a lean, mean thriller about a family in danger with little fluff (and to be honest, we need more of those), Beast will be your jam. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it uses tension and the constant pressure on our protagonists sufficiently well to be worth your time.

Beast heads to theaters August 19th.