Horst in Translation ([email protected])
"Die Bienen - Tödliche Bedrohung" or "Killer Swarm" or "Killer Bees" is a German television movie from 2008, so this one will have its 10th anniversary next year. The director here is Michael Karen and if you look at his body of work and the quality of some of his other stuff, then you shouldn't be expecting too much here. But really the bigger issue is how many writers worked on the film and how weak it turned out nonetheless. Now you probably wonder why I would say/write that and still give these 90 minutes a pretty solid ***/***** rating. The answer may be subjective bias, I cannot deny it. I just really like Janin Reinhardt and why she may not be the greatest actress on the planet, she really makes up for it in the charisma department. She's definitely way more talented in her husband though, but that's obviously not a special achievement. Okay back to this movie. Another crucial point why I liked it is that bees also scare the hell out of me. I must say though that the visible danger from the bees was an area where it could/should have been far more memorable. Occasional hives simply aren't enough. Then again I can understand that this is really a huge challenge as the subject bees is one that is very hard to depict. I liked the scene with the bee in the protective suit though. And how all the bees attacked when she killed one of them. Another aspect I liked is how the bees weren't depicted as the villain. That would be Kanies, even if he and the other known names in here like Behrendt or Kirchberger or Schramm too do not really have enough screen time to truly make an impact. And maybe they also don't have the material. It's all about Reinhardt's and Luca's characters and luckily for audiences Luca isn't too bad either for once this time. I can see why people criticize the ways in which the two keep meeting early on again and again as it really isn't too realistic and also the ways in which their romance progresses, like everything related to that kiss moment. Or I can see why people aren't too happy about the whole 2-man army thingey really. I am perfectly fine with everybody who gives this a lower rating as there are many weaknesses in the script and story and you can say it's indeed too many cooks spoiling the broth. This is not a film I would call good or high quality, but it is a film that is entertaining and fun, at least to me because of my subjective approach on bees and Reinhardt that I mentioned earlier. And the ending was somewhat funny and sweet with the traffic jam, I cannot deny. And you learn a bit about bees here and there too I guess if you aren't an expert already. I give it a thumbs-up indeed.
