Brigsby Bear Review

By Robert Maestas

Brigsby Bear (2017) Directed by Dave McCary

Brigsby Bear tells the story of a young man called James (Kyle Mooney) that lives in an underground bunker for most of his life. He's well-tempered and naive, and lives with his parents. He is an avid fan of the television show "Brigsby Bear". There's only one issue...his life is a complete lie. His parents are actually his captors that forced him to live for years in the underground bunker with them. They also entirely fabricated "Brigsby Bear". So James' world comes crumbling down fairly fast once the police find and save him. His real parents are relieved to find him unharmed, but it soon turns out that James will always have a part of "Brigsby Bear" with him.

James becomes a normal person for the most part, but wants to share his joy of "Brigsby Bear" with the world. The only way to share that joy is to create his own movie.

He has his work cut out for him since the police have confiscated all evidence of the show and his parents don't feel as if it's healthy to dwell on his sad past. Oh hey, and Mark Hamill is in there!

This movie came entirely out of nowhere, and I was grateful for the surprise. It seems like a silly concept, which it is, but it is not without heart and a desire to entertain. It never goes too over-the-top with the comedic sensibilities, and it never delves too deep into James' sad psychosis. Yes, the "Brigsby Bear" show within is hilarious due to its low production value, crummy editing, and questionable morals but the film itself does not fall to such issues. This movie relies on the strength of the main character for this movie to work, and Mooney succeeds. He plays James with such an innocence and childlike energy that it becomes realistic when people start to help James make his movie. And in the end, us as an audience are treated to the same thing as the characters; A silly, fun little movie with wacky but relatable obstacles.