The Beekeeper
review by Bobby Blakey
I love all things, Jason Statham. I love it even more when he is allowed to cut lose and kick ass. Now he is teaming up with the badass director of Fury, Suicide Squad, Bright, End of Watch and Sabotage, David Ayer for their film The Beekeeper. The film co-stars Emmy Raver-Lampman, Josh Hutcherson, Bobby Naderi, Minnie Driver, with Phylicia Rashad and Jeremy Irons. Could this be another great film for both their filmography’s or will it fail to control the hive?
The Beekeeper follows one man’s brutal campaign for vengeance takes on national stakes after he is revealed to be a former operative of a powerful and clandestine organization known as “Beekeepers.”
I could not wait to see what Statham and Ayer were going to bring to the table with this film and it was everything I expected. It’s far from perfect, but as an action film it is top notch and screams of the old school genre that I love. I was worried that the trailer had shown too much, and it did, but there is still enough other stuff here that stands out and is all around a blast to watch in all its violent fun.
Statham is vintage Statham here bringing the stoic persona and ass kicking he is known for. The guy hasn’t lost a step, and I am here for it. The story here isn’t anything we haven’t seen before in overall execution, but they have crafted a John Wick style world that could easily offer up more exploration both in the future and in the past. We all know when given the right project Statham can carry a franchise all on his own and I think this might be the one. He rips
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through the film with a chaotic fury destroying everything in his path and you want more.
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The action is plenty and never pulls any punches as it gets creative and bloody at every turn. Seeing him doing his thing unleashed like this is what makes his films work. The supporting cast all do a decent job with Rashad getting a smaller but important role and Hutcherson getting to chew up the scenery in some over the top fun ways. Almost everyone gets to get in on some aspect of the action and do fine, but it is Statham and the stunt team that really bring it home.
Where the film struggles a bit is in some of the one-liner dialogue and the tonal change halfway through. It’s funny because the over-the-top action is what I love, but also where it takes it from a grounded gritty action flick to something a bit more unbelievable at times. That works for me and want I was hoping for, but likely going to throw some people off. Don’t get me wrong it isn’t goofy or silly and keeps the gritty tone it just rises out of the realistic approach it initially sets up.
There is some pacing and cuts here and there that felt rushed, but I was so happy to get to the next action sequence that I didn’t even care to be honest. Sure, I would have liked a bit more depth and peek into the world of the Beekeepers, but that’s not this story so leaves something more to explore should this world get expanded as I hope it does.
Whether it does or does not, this is a great action flick and one I think Statham fans will truly enjoy. No special features have been announced, but the film holds up all on its own and worth picking up when it hits 4K, Blu-ray and DVD on April 23rd from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment.
