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Hollywood is all about franchises, ie. finding the right material to turn into a big, profitable property no matter how ill-advised they are. (Looking at you, Dark Universe.) Every once in a while, however, a movie comes along that feels tailor made for an expansive cinematic universe — a movie that, had it been made 20 or 30 years ago, would have spawned a popular five-film franchise of, at the very least, straight to DVD sequels. I’m talking about the likes of 2023’s “The Pope’s Exorcist” and “The Beekeeper.”
Released in 2024, the latter film follows Jason Statham as Adam Clay, an ordinary beekeeper who just happens to be a former assassin working for a secret government organization known as (you guessed it!) The Beekeepers. After his elderly neighbor and friend gets scammed out of all her money in a phishing scheme, Clay decides to un-retire and start punishing the entire phishing scam operation. Only, it is not just a random guy on his computer, but an operation that goes all the way to the top in more ludicrous ways than you can imagine. This delightfully ridiculous movie could also make for a fantastic double feature with “Thelma,” a film that handles its own elderly phishing scam in a very different yet no less entertaining way.
Reviews were mostly favorable for “The Beekeeper,” particularly with respect to Statham’s performance. /Film’s Ben Pearson was less enthused in his own review, admittedly, negatively comparing the movie to “John Wick” while still recognizing “there are plenty of enjoyable moments here, and audiences who want nothing more than a Jason Statham beat-’em-up will surely be satisfied.”
All the same, “The Beekeeper” went on to become the first box office hit of 2024, and is now gaining a second wind on streaming. According to FlixPatrol, the film is currently one of the top 10 most-watched movies on Prime Video, and you should absolutely check it out as soon as possible.
Statham’s The Beekeeper is pure, ludicrous fun
“The Beekeeper” doesn’t just have good action scenes, it also has ridiculously fun sequences like Statham throwing a pot of honey at a baddie wielding a machine gun, then tossing a lighter at the spilled honey, causing the baddie to be engulfed in flames because — as another character explains — honey is “Flammable as f***.” It’s a scene so good that it inspired not one, but two /Film staff members to test out whether honey was actually flammable. Unfortunately, unless Statham mixed his honey with kerosene, honey is not, in fact, flammable.
What makes the film shine is not just its action, but also the unique mythology at play, which makes the world of “The Beekeeper” feel bigger and primed for more stories. It’s the much sillier, DTV version of “John Wick,” and if that could become a big franchise, so should this one. Plus, unlike “John Wick,” this movie is determinedly single-minded in its anti-establishment parable, ending with a completely outlandish and awe-inspiring conclusion that begs to be followed up in a sequel.
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