Reviews

This film is a modern take on what is seen as a cult classic amongst many avid comic book and dystopian fiction fans, and what is seen here does majorly take that novel and make it a right proper film; however, it seemly has cut bits and pieces of the original story out, mixed them all around, and put them together again. Many key moments and characters are cut or scrapped, seemingly for cost or time reasons, leaving the movie to feel like somewhat of an empty husk of what the book was. It adds very little to make this feel distinguished from the novel, but it still lacks so much of what made the novel great that it seems we don't get much in the way of originality OR a revamped telling of the comic. Not to say that there aren't positives. Writing improvements have been made in most characters that make the ones we do see stand out more, and connect with the viewer better, and some of the casting choices are quite spot on, a personal favorite being John Hurt playing Chancellor Sutler, which stuck with me after the film had ended. This is an entertaining watch, but if you want to experience the best possible version of this story told, you're better off reading the original.

The Secret Life of Bees is a 2008 adaptation of the Sue Monk Kidd historical fiction novel. It takes place in 60´s during the civil rights movement and is about Lily Owens who flees her abusive father in search of learning more about her mother. She ends up meeting 3 beekeeping sisters who graciously take Lily in. It's a film akin to To Kill a Mockingbird in that it's a coming of age story for a youth, but also uses these maturing experiences the lead goes through to illustrate the era that the film took place. The movie does a very good job of following the book and fans of the novel will not be disappointed. Many lines are ripped right from the book and most actors´ portrayal of these characters do a good job of following the established personalities from the novel. The film is tightly written; however, the pacing can be inconsistent. It feels that many times the plot will slow or stop to allow for any one random thing to occur that may not even build character. The cinematography was average and did not falter much, and the tone of the movie has a very warm, summer vibe. It feels like the era, and it feels like it takes you there. The emotion was a major point for me. Every character exuded personality and became very likable, even if they weren't at first, and even if a character was unlikable, (as some very definitely are), it was very easy to sympathize with their struggles and what made them who they are. While I personally liked the film overall, I can understand why some would not enjoy it, and it has its fair share of flaws. I would recommend it only if you like the kind of slice-of-life slow paced movies that this compares to, but if you read the book and thought it was a good read then I would certainly say to give the movie a try.