Critic's Corner:
"Bee Movie"
By DNA Smith
Running time: 95 minutes
MPAA rating: PG
You'd think with all the buzz surrounding Jerry Seinfeld's pet project, "Bee Movie," that the film would have had a little more sting to it. I mean, this is Seinfeld we're talkin' 'bout. The king of observational humor. The master of his domain when it comes to caustic insights into the human condition.
But alas, the trademark Seinfeldian wit that enthralled us for nine years on television is sadly absent in this movie.
Oh sure, there are funny bits in the movie. But the big laughs don't come as often as they should in a movie that's only an hour and a half long, with four writers.
And frankly, many of the bee jokes just fall flat.
Seinfeld (or rather his voice) stars as Barry Benson, a young bee who longs to escape the monotonous life of a drone and venture out of the hive as a "pollen jock" -- a caste of beefcake bees whose job it is to grab nectar and to pollinate flowers.
One day, the jocks take him out for a run into the real world. Barry gets separated from his compatriots and winds up in the home of florist Vanessa (Renee Zellweger). As Barry gets to know Vanessa, he soon discovers -- to his horror -- that millions of bees are enslaved by humans to make honey. Barry then sues humanity for the emancipation of all bees and the return of all the ill-gotten honey -- with disastrous environmental consequences.
"Bee Movie" isn't quite a dog of a flick, but it isn't that great either. If you really must see it, catch it as a matinee. Otherwise, this is strictly rental material.
GRADE: C- (and I soooo wanted to give it a B)
(c) 2007 King Features Synd., Inc. | 
