Tell It to the Bees

Tell It To The Bees, is a beautiful film set in a time that those, who gave this film one star, possibly wished would return. A time when to choose who we loved was considered a vile act, but to act vilely to those that did was expected behaviour. The film tells its story with grace, leaving the audience to decide who, if anyone in particular, are the victims. Special mention for Gregor Selkirk who is captivating as the young son, caught in the middle of the storm. Even though several have seemingly chosen to make a moral judgement in their score (for a film that isn't really that contentious) I will simply give what I hope is a more reasoned assessment. An excellent film and well worth your time.

The director draws excellent performances from the two female leads (playing Lydia and Dr Jean) and also from the very capable supporting cast. The cinematography and production design capture the ambience and restrictive social mores of the "small" 1950s Scottish mill town quite convincingly. The story is less convincing about the symbolism of the bees (which is presumably derived from the book). We see too many random extreme close-ups of bees, Lydia's son Charlie sharing his secrets with the bees in their hives, and in the last 20 minutes of the movie, an incident which implies that the bees have developed some sort of preternatural relationship with the boy. This latter aspect, particularly, seems rather incongruous with the otherwise quite adult themed lesbian romance story. It strikes me as a movie primarily to be enjoyed for its great character acting.

This is a convincing and captivating story. I find it touching and engaging.

Greetings again from the darkness. Secrets and lies become a tangled web of messiness that impacts lives and relationships in this story adapted from Fiona Shaw's 2009 novel. Annabel Jankel (known for her music videos and as a creator of Max Headroom) directs the script from sisters Henrietta and Jessica Ashworth, and we learn that this rural community in 1952 Scotland is filled with judgmental and close-minded folks unable to accept that some don't live and love according to society's general rules of the time.

Holliday Grainger ("The Borgias") stars as Lydia, mother to young Charlie (Gregor Selkirk), and the two have recently been abandoned by husband -father Robert (Emun Elliott). Charlie is a sensitive boy - in touch with nature, and observant to his mother's emotional strains. After a schoolyard scuffle, Charlie is treated by the town's new doctor, Dr. Markham (Anna Paquin, "True Blood"), who not only treats his bruises, but also teaches him about the bees and hives in her garden. She lets him know that telling your secrets to the bees keeps them from flying away.

Dr. Markham has returned to the community where she grew up, and the rumors of her teenage years have not faded. Her father recently passed and she has returned to her roots to take his place as the local doctor. When Lydia gets sacked at the factory where she works (by Kate Dickie's Pam, her spinster sister-in-law/supervisor), Dr. Markham hires Lydia as a housekeeper and invites her and Charlie to move into the house left to her by her father.

"This town is too small for secrets" is not simply a line of dialogue, but easily could have been the title of the films. As Charlie tells his secrets to the bees, Lydia and Dr. Markham grow closer ... creating confusion for Charlie, challenges for the two women, and disgust within the community. Robert is a brut of a man, and threatens Lydia in every way a simple man might. There is also a subplot around Lydia's younger sister-in-law Annie (Lauren Lyle), who is pregnant from a secretive interracial relationship. What follows is a vicious response from the close-minded folks previously mentioned.

An older Charlie is our narrator, and most of the story is told from his point of view. Secrets kept by children are contrasted by those of adults, and it's clear that both cause harm. The first part of the movie is beautifully filmed, though the story structure wobbles a bit in the second half. There are many fascinating close-ups of bees and hives, although a mystical/supernatural sequence is difficult to buy. Excellent acting is on display throughout, especially by young Gregor Selkirk and Ms. Grainger, whose face the camera loves. The film is quite tastefully done, and focused as much on the small-minded town folks reaction as the blossoming relationship between the two leads. A stronger third act would have elevated the film, though the first half hour is well done.

This is not so much a love story about a "forbidden" love, but it is also about a child who slowly discovers how things work in the adult world.

This film has a slow start (after about 30 minutes the pace picks up), but my patience is well rewarded at the end. An ending that raises some questions. Yet I didn't feel it had a very strange ending. Only after talking to someone about it for half an hour did I find out why the ending felt good to me. So does the aforementioned quote get a completely different meaning in the end. I think the filmmakers intended to make a film that makes you think.

The acting is very good. Especially Gregor Selkirk, who plays the son, is excellent. I have seen few young actors acting so convincingly and realistically. I had to get used to Anna Paquin, who plays Dr. Jean Markham, because she reminded me a bit of BBC Kate Bliss (Bargain Hunt, Flog it !, Put your money where your mouth is). If you would say that Kate Bliss and Anna Paquin were sisters, I would believe it. I had to suppress a chuckle when Jean said she didn't have any teaspoons. Kate Bliss being the silver expert. I think I have seen Steven Robertson before in the detective series "Shetland" and I had wondered if his accent was realistic. In this film the Scottish accent feels to me more realistic than the one he had in "Shetland". (But I'm not Scottish so it's just a feeling of someone who's second language is English).

Apart from a scene with too many bees (which looks almost surreal), I think this is an excellent film.