The Country Bears (2002)

Wow, that was an excruciating watch. From literally the first few seconds you know where <em>'The Country Bears'</em> is going, both with the plot but also with the concept of the bears themselves. That's if you didn't already guess from the poster. As always I try to find the positive parts: ... ... Yeah. If I was forced to pick something, it would be one or two of the songs which are not horrid; there's also a notable cameo from an English musician, I guess that's one? As you can tell, it's not good at all. On the contrary, where to start with the negatives?! The bears. Having people in costumes is always a bad idea, it cheapens everything else around it. They have little or no emotion, so it's impossible to feel attached to the characters. The dub-like audio for them, and other parts of film, is very poor. No-one stands out in the cast, with the exception of Christopher Walken (Reed) - but that's only because of Walken's fame, not his role in this. The premise is so predictable and lazy, they don't even attempt to throw you off the scent - instead trying to force a heartwarming story, which doesn't land whatsoever. I, no matter what, always feel 1* is harsh, but this deserves it. Of the 1,106 films I've currently seen, this is just the fifth time a film has scored this low with me. Truly dreadful.