The Beekeeper (2024) | Film Review

From the minute the plot commits to its elusive lead character’s motives, we know exactly what kind of action-packed ride we are in store for with The Beekeeper. Take a known ass-kicker, ala Jason Statham, give them a unique job title that is code for something nefarious, ala The Transporter or The Mechanic, and drop a sufficient amount of motivation. It’s a tale as old as Charles Bronson. Rarely, though, does the respective film succeed as well as this fast-paced bee-movie does.

Jason Statham stars as Adam Clay, a quiet loner renting a barn from his sweet landlord, Eloise (Phylicia Rashad, given far too little to do here) and tending to his hives and honey from day-to-day. Eloise is quickly taken by a scam artist scheme – led by Derek Danforth, played with pitch perfect Millennial jackassery by Josh Hutcherson – who manages to drain every dime Eloise has ever touched, and therefore prompts Eloise to take her own life. Her daughter, FBI Agent Verona Parker (Emmy Raver-Lampman), swiftly deduces the source behind her mother’s despair, and Adam Clay decides to launch a fully-fledged effort to take down the entire hive despite Verona’s intent on bringing them down the noble way.

What Eloise and Verona did not know is that Adam Clay is not any basic beekeeper. Oh no. This is a grizzled veteran retiree of a covert government agency known as The Beekeepers, and these rogue assassins were the Queen slayers of the military; taking out any and all imperfect bees that might infect the hive and all its honey. Just so we are clear, the bees in this scenario are of the human variety. The only person who might have a chance to stop Clay is a former CIA Director named Wallace (a relatively manic Jeremy Irons), whose motives become clearer as the film unfolds. But if you have seen any of these styles of films before, you know exactly how ridiculously unmatched that face off will ultimately be. Or is it bee?

What you really want to know is if this movie is buzzworthy, right? If this honey is sweet to eat? Then I have good news for you, as ridiculous as this plot is – yes, Kurt Wimmer, your script is deliciously absurd – this flick really buzzes. But while the story might be a stretch, David Ayer’s direction and stunt choreography are top-notch.

The action set-pieces in The Beekeeper are visceral with no-holds-barred. Teeth are knocked out, faces are pummeled, people are blown to smithereens without a second thought. Adam Clay does not suffer any fools and neither does Jason Statham. The Beekeeper is firmly in his wheelhouse, even his roundhouse, and this is the kind of film Statham has excelled in for over a decade, though this being one of his better crafted ones.

Though Statham actually has a penchant for humor, no such smiles creep through his furrowed brow in this film. That said, Ayer and Wimmer cram enough nods to bees and cheekiness to subtly acknowledge that yes, they know how insane this all is, they just want us all to wink along with them, roll with it, and trust they will deliver.

David Ayer crafts an entertaining revenge thriller that harkens back to the days of Taken and leaves us with Statham’s strongest leading role in years. Despite a story that feels pulled straight out of the 90s, The Beekeeper is ass-kicking fun from start to finish.