The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Director:

Gina Prince-Bythewood

Writers (WGA):

Gina Prince-Bythewood (screenplay)
Sue Monk Kidd (novel)

Release Date:

17 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Bring Your Girlfriends, Sisters, Mothers and Daughters

Plot:

set in South Carolina in 1964, this is the tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother...

Plot Keywords:

South Carolina | South | Sister | Southern Accent | Statue

Awards:

10 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Dakota Fanning	...	Lily Owens
Queen Latifah	...	August Boatwright
Jennifer Hudson	...	Rosaleen Daise
Alicia Keys	...	June Boatwright
Sophie Okonedo	...	May Boatwright
Paul Bettany	...	T. Ray Owens
Hilarie Burton	...	Deborah Owens
Tristan Wilds	...	Zach Taylor
Nate Parker	...	Neil
Shondrella Avery	...	Greta
Renée Clark	...	Doll
Sharon Morris	...	Violet
Nicky Buggs	...	Cressie
Jasmine Burke	...	Sugar Girl
Emma Sage Bowman	...	Young Lily #1

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic material and some violence.

Runtime:

USA:114 min (director's cut) | Canada:110 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #44411) | Ireland:15A | UK:12A | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:G (Québec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Australia:M | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | New Zealand:M | Norway:11 | Argentina:13 | Mexico:B | Finland:K-11 | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

North Carolina, USA

Company:

Fox Searchlight Pictures

Goofs:

Continuity: When Lily and Zach are kissing, Lily's hair keeps moving back and forth from behind her ear to the side of her face depending on the camera angle.

Quotes:

Rosaleen Daise: How come you all got names from a calendar?
May Boatwright: Our mama loved spring and summer. We had an April too, but she... she died when she was little.
[runs out of the room, sobbing and humming]

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 35th Annual People's Choice Awards (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Keep Marching

Warm, heartfelt drama.

The Secret Life Of Bees, is a marvelous new drama. It's focus is 13-year-old Lily Owens (played with a deft emotional range, by Dakota Fanning). The film takes place in 1964 in the southern US, during the birth of the civil rights movement.

Lily is haunted by the fact that she accidentally shot her mother, when playing with a pistol as a toddler. She also develops a strange affinity for bees, which is bewildering to her. Lily's violent father is abusive towards her. The Owen's black housekeeper Rosaleen, is a mother figure and confidante to Lily.

One day, Lily goes to town with Rosaleen, when Rosaleen plans on registering to vote. Racist white men confront them, taunting Rosaleen. When Rosaleen refuses to tolerate their behavior, the men give her a vicious beating. The police soon intervene. Rosaleen is arrested, and held in custody at the medical ward of the local jail.

Outraged at what happened to Rosaleen, Lily goes to the jail and frees Rosaleen, before the guards find out. Lily and Rosaleen then hit the road, leaving Lily's brutal father far behind. The two come upon a store in a small town, which stocks jars of honey. Intrigued with the unusual labeling on the honey jars, Lily asks the clerk where the honey comes from. She's told that the Boatwright sisters make the honey.

Lily then asks the clerk, where they can find the Boatwright sisters. And she's told that they reside in a huge, 'bright pink' house, a 'ways up the road'. So, Lily feels strangely compelled to find the Boatwrights, for reasons that she doesn't quite understand.

After traveling a long way, Lily and Rosaleen spot a bright pink house, in a remote area. Tired, hungry and needing shelter, they knock on the door of this house. The three women who answer introduce themselves as the Boatwright sisters, named May, June, and August.

At first, the Boatwrights are reluctant to take in Lily and Rosaleen. They relent, when they realize that the two have no where else to turn. August, the eldest sister, lets Lily become their beekeeping apprentice. Rosaleen is allowed to stay on as the Boatwright's housekeeper. While living with the Boatwrights, Lily unravels the mysteries of her dead mother. Much to her astonishment, Lily discovers how the Boatwrights are deeply involved in her mother's past.

Above all, this film celebrates love, and its power to transform human lives in amazing ways. The brilliant performances by the female leads, make this movie the gem that it truly is. Films with strong, positive women in leading roles, are still not as common as they should be. The Secret Life Of Bees, is a powerful film that's heartrending, uplifting, and a definite must-see.