Probably one of the worst movies I have ever seen about bees. Was that Reese Witherspoon’s first role?
Probably one of the best movies I have seen about bees.
Honeybees and cinema can be a deadly combination, but if done just right it can make for a great movie.
I believe there is a certain ratio of bees to movie time that is the determinant factor for the success or failure of the movie. If the movie is 90% bees and 10% everything else the movie is sure to fall like a rock in a vacuum. But if the movie is primarily about the people and the bees are tangential to the story than the likelihood of success multiplies.
To prove my point just look at some of the movies listed below.
1. Ulee’s Gold. Good movie and a good story. Honeybees are not the primary focus of the movie.
2. The Secret Life of Bees. Again the bees are only an aspect of the story.
3. The Bee Movie. This movie is technically about honeybees but they are so anthropomorphized that it is really a human story with honeybees as fill ins for actors. Think about that movie if it portrayed honeybees for how they really act. Can you imagine the critical acclaim it would have received if all of the drones were thrown out of the hive at the end of the year to starve to death. Granted, seeing the Seinfeld character bemoan his situation as he froze to death in the snow might be a laugh for us but children would probably not understand.
4. The Great Santini: Another great movie where the bees play a small but vital role.
And then we get movies like the one seen at the top. The bees are portrayed more ridiculously than the human characters. This is usually what comes from made for TV movies. Crap plot, B-grade special effects, and community theater actors getting their first big break.
If you know of any other Bee-Movies please list them here. Good or bad.
