DreamWorks Studio returns with its latest animated
movie about life in a
bee colony. As with earlier DreamWorks productions such as the "Shrek" trilogy and "Finding Nemo", "Bee Movie" contains the necessary elements for box office success - a creative storyline, plenty of humour and excellent CGI.
The time has come for Barry B. Benson (whom Jerry Seinfeld lent his
voice to), a newly graduated bee to pick a career in Honex, the beehive corporation with its elaborate and intricate system, in which he will work for the rest of his life. Perplexed upon learning that all
bees are to stay in the same job forever, be it a stirrer or a Pollen Jock (a jock-like bee whose duty is to go out and pollinate the flowers while extracting nectar), Barry leaves the hive for the first time on a special
trip and gets himself involved in a series of near-death events. At the end of the day, he becomes infatuated with a human florist (voiced by Renee Zellweger) who saved him from being crushed to death.
On a subsequent trip to the outside world, Barry discovers that human beings actually consume honey, the precious resource and result of the entire bee population's hard work, and files the mother of all lawsuits - bees versus humans.
From the start to the end, "Bee Movie" garners laughter almost on a regular basis throughout. Besides the usual visual comedy that appeals mainly to the children in the audience, there was also something for the grown-ups, in the form of comedic dialogue and tongue-in-cheek humour.
This film is very inventive in the way it creates the world of the bees and their way of life, casting a humorous light in explaining insect behaviours. It also parodies the human race on many levels, inciting many laughs in the process.
The working environment in Honex feels a little like Asian mentality. Job hopping is not really encouraged, and just three days after graduation, Barry's parents are concerned that Barry has not started working or even decided on a career choice. Also, the way humans unethically steal the valuable resources from the
honey - by creating artificial hives where they exploit bees they kidnapped to work and create honey - mimics the way civilised parts of the world thoughtlessly deplete natural resources for their narcissistic needs.
In featuring the voice of many famous actors and actresses, "Bee Movie" is bound to attract many movie-goers. The interesting cameos add value to the movie, especially with Sting playing himself, sued in the courtroom of Judge Bumbleton (Oprah Winfrey) for using a word associated with insects for his stage name. Ray Liotta also provides the voice for a character as himself, who in the show is a shrewd owner of a massive Honey brand. Chris Rock's voice is used for Mooseblood, a mosquito who later becomes a lawyer. Larry King speaks for the Bee Larry King, also a talk show host but in the bee kingdom.
Rising to expectations of animation, the CGI here is brilliant, with extremely realistic depictions of landscape scenery and facial expressions. Particularly, on Barry's first trip out of the hive, the aerial scenes of the bees flying across the city were breathtaking and impressive.
This is an easily enjoyable and perfect entertainment for the whole family, since it caters across different levels, and you can't go wrong when every one is laughing so hard.
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