BEE MOVIE
Directors: Steve Hickner, Simon J. Smith Stars: Voices of: Jerry Seinfeld, Renee Zellwegger, Chris Rock, Matthew Broderick, Kathy Bates, Barry Levinson, Patrick Warburton, Oprah Winfrey, John Goodman, Ray Liotta
Reviewed by PETER KRAUSZ
This is a likable animated story, genial rather than great.
About ten years ago, Woody Allen as Z in Antz did the unexpected and the undesirable thing. He questioned the long tradition of work and conformism in the ant colony. He went out and saw the world. Perhaps Jerry Seinfeld went out and saw Antz and was inspired to write Bee Movie.
Seinfeld voices the hero, Barry Beston, who, along with his friend and stickler for the rules, Adam (voice of Matthew Broderick), graduates, is taken on a tour of the honey production plant where they are all to work – and to choose a job which they will have all their lives. That doesn’t seem right to Barry who is also a disappointment to his parents (Kathy Bates and Barry Levinson). Barry goes out with the nectar collecting squad and has a succession of unfortunate accidents (pratfall laughs for the audience) and ends up almost killed by a vain tennis player (Patrick Warburton) but is saved by a nice florist Vanessa (Renee Zellwegger). Despite the bees’ rule not to talk to humans, Barry does and becomes firm friends with Vanessa. Surprised by the fact that a bee could talk, she soon gets used to it and they chatter along amiably.
A key event is the discovery of mass produced honey which deprives the bees of their livelihood and income – under the brand name of Ray Liotta. A court case ensues presided over by the judge (Oprah Winfrey) and defended by an outlandish Southern drawl lawyer (an amusing turn by John Goodman). Barry is interviewed on TV by a Larry King bee lookalike. Ray Liotta comes into court and loses his cool. Sting is called as a witness to be unmasked as Gordon Sumner exploiting a serious bee characteristic for his commercial name and gain.
We understand these bees because they are just like us – and we too would be sympathetic if we could have conversations with them! In the meantime, this is pleasant bee social-minded propaganda.