The kids and I went to see The Bee Movie on Thursday. We won tickets to the premier through a family internet site and it was fun. We got their early and were able to get great seats. The theater could hold almost 500 people, so it was a big one.We were luckily enough to sit right at the row where no one else will sit in front of you, but you still have a great view. Not too close, not too far. There was a ton of security looking for people with video recorders, cameras, phones, etc… I actually had my new Flip Video recorder with me, but turned it off, I forgot I had it in my pocket.
The security guards bought Dryver and Stryde some Chocolate ice cream from Cold Stone, which kicked-off what was going to be a great night.
The movie started with the normal trailers, though I had expected something special given all the places for Press and PR people reserved in the theater. Some good movies coming this winter, with Fred Clause at the top of my ‘to see list.’ The movie started, and from the first few minutes we were in a trance. This is one of the first computer animated full length films that actually does a great job of making you see the perspective of the character. Most of the films where you are a bug or an animal, you still see the movie as a human watching the film. This movie did an excellent job of showing you what a bee would see if they were flying around and did such a great job of telling a story while giving you perspective.
The story was very well written, with the jokes being for both kids and adults. I found myself laughing out loud a few times and looking over at Dryver and Stryde as they were snickering at the many funny scenes in the beehive.
Jerry Seinfeld did a great job of playing the lead character, and not once did I think of George, Elaine, or Kramer. He was really funny as a bee and on top of that as a fidgety teenager. The story was really well told and presented in a great way. The animation was excellent and there were some scenes where you felt like you were a part of the story.
There were a bunch of great actors/actresses in this one, including John Goodman, Matthew Broderick, Renee Zellweger, Larry King, and the best was Chris Rock! Chris should keep to animated films as they are 100x better than the non-animated.
I really really loved the movie and would go see it again. It is probably the best animated film this year, though I did love Ratatouille also. There was a great scene with the Bee version of Larry King that had both Jennifer and me laughing. The movie lasted about 90 minutes, but it was quick and could have gone on for at least another 30 minutes before I got tired.
Though I loved the movie, the best measure is the kids. There are a handful of metrics I use to judge if they liked the movie, and if I am going to buy them the DVD or other merchandise. The movie scored great on all of these metrics:- Interest – 5 out of 5 – the kids watched the whole movie and didn’t wander.
- Humor – 5 out of 5 – the kids were laughing out loud and also talked about the jokes after the movie.
- Understanding – 4 out of 5 – the kids seemed to get the story and it stuck with them.
- Engagement – 4 out of 5 – they wanted to watch it again and will watch it many times on DVD when it comes out.
- Overall – 5 out of 5 – the kids laughed, talked about the film after the movie was over.
The movie was great and I strongly suggest you take your kids to go see it in the theater. If you can’t make it to the movies, spend the money to buy it on DVD. It will be in the rotation of movies for many years.
