It’s hard to Beelieve in “The Beekeeper”

Have you ever heard of the term, “Queen Slayer?” Chances are, you probably haven’t. It’s a term used to describe a worker bee who climbs the ranks in the hive until they kill the queen, because she has been producing faulty offspring. This term is the cornerstone of the movie, “The Beekeeper.”

Jason Statham is the Beekeeper, a ruthless vigilante who is powered by his own will and morals to protect the U.S. from all threats, just as a beekeeper would protect a hive. The movie is a fast-paced and gruesome show of justice and civil defense by the Beekeeper. It is fun and engaging all the way through, but it has many drawbacks. 

For one, characters in the movie are constantly freaking out because he’s the Beekeeper, but no one explains what that means until the movie is starting to close. The story takes over an hour to make any real sense. Throughout the film, it feels like you, the viewer, are being excluded from an inside joke known only by the main characters. It is funny in an almost psychotic way to feel excluded from the main plot of the story. You have to laugh, because you are so confused and don’t know if you are missing something, or if the story is not fully fleshed out yet. All of these ambiguities make the story convoluted and tiring to follow, but not enough to make you want to leave. Thank god for the over-the-top fight scenes and aggression, because otherwise the movie wouldn’t be worth anything.

Additionally, Statham plays a faux John Wick/Equalizer that has no explanation as to who he is. He starts his killing spree with the scammers who caused his nice old landlady to commit suicide. He then makes his way up the ladder, making gory kills until he reaches the president’s son. 

Once you understand the premise of the movie and learn the concept of who the Beekeeper is, then the story is finally easy to follow. Although incredibly unrealistic, the Beekeeper becomes an interesting character based on the concept of an all-powerful American weapon that fights for the country’s general stance on right and wrong, protecting those who need protection and killing those who don’t deserve to live.

 Overall, if you like Statham and fictional vigilantes who work to “protect the hive,” then this is the movie for you. But I wouldn’t recommend getting your hopes up over the plot. I personally would give “The Beekeeper” a C for fun, but watching it also feels like you are down and being constantly kicked while laughing it off.