Written by: Josh "The Merc" Raynor
Colin Minihan’s latest film, Coyotes, takes us up into the Hollywood Hills where a family is terrorized by a pack of vicious coyotes. Real-life couple Justin Long and Kate Bosworth star alongside Mila Harris, Brittany Allen, Keir O’Donnell, and Norbert Leo Butz in this tense and thrilling horror comedy, which delivers a wild ride of suspense, dark humor, and emotional moments.
When I first saw the trailer for this film, I was pumped to see it. I’ve always been a fan of nature-based horror films. I even wrote an entire listicle on the topic when I used to write for Collider a few years back, and if I were to update that article now, Coyotes would definitely be on it.
The trailer does a great job of showcasing the humorous tone, but what surprised me when watching the film was just how tense it really was, and how it actually leans a bit more onto the side of horror than it does comedy.
There are some legitimately terrifying moments throughout, as well a few wonderfully gory shots. At times, this film feels like a horror comedy version of The Grey, and honestly, I would’ve loved to have seen Liam Neeson pop up in this in a comedic moment to poke fun at that movie. It would’ve been hilarious.
But while we get plenty of horror moments and some nice comedic beats, deep down at its core this film is about the importance of family. This fact helped turn what could’ve just been a D-tier animal attack horror flick into something so much more, something that I really enjoyed and will continue to enjoy.
This aspect of the film wouldn’t have worked if not for the amazing performances by both Kate Bosworth and horror king Justin Long. As a real-life couple, it was easy to showcase their chemistry, but even their solo moments shined as they bounced from humor to terror to touching, emotional moments. Bosworth served perfectly as the straightman to Long’s funnyman, but she wasn’t without her comedic moments, which was great to see.
I also want to shout out the amazing cinematography and score in this film. There are several absolutely amazing shots and sequences that really stuck with me and made this film stand out as something special, and not just another in a long line of animal attack stories, and the way the score and music choices helped to build tension and break it down at just the right moments was perfect.
Now, with all that said, the film isn’t without its flaws. Most of the other characters ranged from subpar to just alright, and there were a couple of questionable effects moments throughout. The film also doesn’t break a lot of new ground with the story, not that it necessarily needed to, because when something works, it works. However, none of that really took too much away from my overall enjoyment of film, but I feel like it needed to be said.
Overall, I really enjoyed this film and am looking forward to seeing it in a theater, on the big screen, with an audience of fellow horror lovers. If you get the chance to check this one out, I definitely recommend it.
The Merc’s Score: 8/10
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