Creature features have always thrived on absurd premises, but Colin Minihan’s Coyotes takes that tradition and tears into it with teeth bared. A horror-comedy about a Hollywood Hills family under siege by a pack of unnervingly intelligent coyotes, this is one of the most entertainingly unhinged genre films of the year and one of the better horror openers in recent memory.
The setup is surprisingly plausible: a Santa Ana windstorm traps the Stewarts, Scott (Justin Long), Liv (Kate Bosworth), and their daughter Chloe (Mila Harris) in their hillside home, cut off from help just as the coyotes close in. These aren’t your usual trash-scavenging pests but an organized, predatory force, hunting with the precision of Jurassic Park raptors. At times, it feels like that scene in Beauty and the Beast where Maurice is ambushed by wolves, except stretched into a full, blood-soaked movie.
The film juggles tones in a way that shouldn’t work but does. It’s frequently laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes because of its over-the-top characters, and yet it doesn’t skimp on real scares. A few sequences of the coyotes stalking their prey are genuinely nerve-rattling, while the practical effects, half-eaten corpses, and shredded bodies are stomach-churning in the best possible way. For once, the CG animals actually look convincing, but it’s the makeup work that really sells the horror.
The standout character is the neighbor Trip (Norbert Leo Butz), who steals scenes whether he’s sobbing over his cat or requesting questionable bedroom antics from his date. With his dangling earring and eccentric energy, he feels like a Mike Busey type, less wealthy but still running his own version of a perpetual house party. He’s the kind of character who makes you laugh no matter the situation, a welcome counterbalance to the gore and chaos.
Justin Long proves again why he’s a national treasure, grounding the madness with his blend of sincerity and zaniness. Kate Bosworth brings grit and unpredictability to Liv, and Mila Harris is a strong presence as Chloe. Even characters who get limited screen time feel distinct and memorable. Devon, a scene-stealing oddball who disappears for much of the movie, still leaves a lasting impression, like a real-life Dale Gribble thrown into a survival horror.
The pacing is relentless, barreling forward without letting the audience catch its breath. Yet within all the bloodletting and absurdity, Coyotes manages to land a few surprisingly heartfelt beats. Those moments don’t dilute the fun; they sharpen it.
Ultimately, Coyotes is exactly what many hoped Cocaine Bear or Bambi: The Reckoning might be: fast, bloody, funny, scary, and just plain stupid in the most entertaining sense. It’s a film that never apologizes for what it is, a slasher with coyotes, and that commitment makes it an absolute blast.
Jessie Hobson