Synopsis
A sheriff tries to save unsuspecting townspeople, including his estranged wife and young daughter, from a deadly swarm.
Killer Bees
2002 Directed by Penelope Buitenhuis
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Alternative Titles
Killerbienen!, Essaim Mortel, Abeilles tueuses, Θανατηφόρο Κεντρί, Les Abeilles, Пчели убийци, Včelí zabijáci, Mörderischer Schwarm, Abejas asesinas, Gyilkos fullánk, Api assassine, Abelhas Assassinas, Смертоносные твари
Releases by Date
Physical
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France
TV
19 Nov 2002
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USA
Releases by Country
France
06 Sep 2004
- Physical
USA
19 Nov 2002
- TV
Popular reviews
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Partly a relevant and open-eyed dangerous animal thriller, partly a hamfisted and laughable piece of low budget dreck, "Killer Bees" leans toward the latter and, unfortunately for the viewer, not the former. Starring C. Thomas Howell as a local sheriff nee farmer whose small town becomes beset by both the titular insects and residents who avoid scientific reasoning, the work moves through screenwriting 101 beats that form a solid foundation for a flimsy film. That story may be sound, but the production, performances, and tone are clumsily appointed. Though its narrative brain heart may be in the right place, the film is not a worthy watch.
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All in all, in spite of the cheesy special effects, the bees are nasty buggers and tension does rise, leading up to the usual "pull it out of a hat" solution to the problem, just when everything seems hopeless.
I’ve seen C. Thomas Howell in several of these cheesy SyFy type movies and it seems like he’s found his later in acting life niche. Good for him. -
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Hooptober 6.0 - 29/31
I didn't realize this was a tv movie but the moment it started that was all too evident. The opening credits feature some truly terrible CGI bees flying around that don't look at all like they belong in the film. The entire movie features actors unconvincingly swatting at bees that aren't actually there. I was hoping that this movie was going to be one of those terrible SyFy or Asylum productions but instead it's basically a drama film with a few scenes where people end up dead off-screen in very undramatic fashion.
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I saw this movie when I was REALLY little, so going into it I had only recalled a handful of scenes and none of the plot. Turns out there wasn't much to either, but as far as completely harmless TV-PG horror films go it isn't the worst. There are a few scenes here and there that are goofy most due to a lack of awareness on the film's part, and the fact that the "swarm" looks like a giant collection of dots makes for some pretty unintentionally funny deaths. I can see why I saw it when I was so little as the movie doesn't have anything in it that people would deem inappropriate for kids (save for hicks adding o's to the end of English words to communicate with Mexicans).
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A real stinker of a movie. CGI bees that look like something from the birdemic catalog and a flaccid story that reads like a mad libs about the screenwriters very prosaic life and the blanks filled in with “KILLER BEES”.
A few good giggles at how fucking scared of Mexican people this movie is, tho. Bizarre how well in encapsulates the attitudes of the era in a character who is never entirely on camera, whose only sin is trying to make a living, and dies as the result of a reckless police pursuit with dubious motives.
Not a great movie, but if you have potent memories from your childhood of people being awful to Hispanic people for no real reason and want a bizarre take on a villain who doesn’t even get his face on screen or a proper credit, well, here’s your movie.
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Watched with a group of entomologists over zoom during Black in Entomology Week in 2021. The experience was awesome, the movie was not.
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About a decade ago I almost sold a pitch for a movie called Zombees, but the deal never panned out. While I don't claim to be a great storyteller, at least I tried to layer in some social commentary about the dying off of the bees that was happening at the time.
This film on the other hand is just dull and boring. Had I known it was a made for TV movie I probably would have skipped it, as the low budget bees are downright laughable, as I've seen better CGI on $10k features. This one isn't even in the class of "so bad it's good," as it's played too straight without a silent wink to the audience, or any other aspect that typically plague those type of films.
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