Sundance Film Festival 2026 – Nuisance Bear is as the title suggests. It’s about a polar bear that’s been labeled a “nuisance” in Churchill, Manitoba, the “polar bear capital of the world.” Due to climate change, the animal spends more time on land and frequently escapes capture by wildlife officers that try to corral it away from the human population. Like other nature documentaries, the A24-produced film has gorgeous shots of the natural landscape and wildlife, but it also asks complex questions about the effects of climate change and how an alpha predator’s world has been altered as a result, as it continually confronts modern life.
The documentary is based on an award-winning short by Gabriela Osio Vanden and Jack Weisman. It has an unnamed Inuit narrator who speaks of the longstanding relationship between polar bears and the Inuit people, especially the respect that Innuits have for the creature. Yet the narration never simplifies the relationship or the clashes between the modern world and the polar bear. That said, the documentary questions whether it’s possible for humans and polar bears to coexist, especially the longer that polar bears are forced to stay upon land, awaiting ice so they can return to a more natural habitat.
It’s rather disheartening to see a bus of tourists on “Lazy Bear Expeditions” gawk at the wonderous creature, taking out their cell phones to record video and snap pictures. It’s also alarming how close photographers and tourists inch towards the creature, as it wanders closer and closer to human activity, including a massive garbage dump. There’s even one scene where a garbage truck driver chases the bear down the road, honking at it. It’s quite disorienting to see a wild creature wander through these various examples of human modernity, while tourists look on. But what choice does it have?
As the polar bear steals seal meat from a trap, nearly breaks into shacks, and generally searches for food, it is entertaining to watch it outsmart various wildlife officers that want to push it further away from the garbage dump and other human locations. It’s a testament to the bear’s resilience and resistance, as well as its dire need to find food. The film is so effective because we stay with the polar bear for the duration of the 90 minutes, which underscores the challenges it faces because its natural environmental has so drastically changed, forcing constant run-ins with humans, including tourists and hunters. On the other hand, the documentary provides the community’s perspective regarding the danger of a polar bear wandering through the neighborhood.
While the film grapples with the impact of climate change on a single polar bear, it features some breathtaking cinematography, not just of the polar bear lounging on rocks, or hunting, but also other wildlife, including caribou and foxes. Vanden and Weisman captured some stunning underwater shots too, both of the polar bear and seals. The documentary is worth a watch just for the striking images.
Nuisance Bear isn’t a typical nature documentary. It shows firsthand how a polar bear struggles to adapt to the new realities of climate change, often clashing with humans as tourists look on, snapping photos and recording on their cell phones. This is a compelling film that confronts much deeper issues. It does so with gorgeous imagery and poetic narration.
