L'ape Maia - Il film

My kids LOVED IT! By kids I mean my Niece and Nephew. They've been recently introduced to Maya the Bee through the TV show, and we were lucky enough to score some tickets to the premiere in Sydney and it was a brilliant day for us. My Niece is 5 and wanted me to find the song on YouTube which we did and she was singing it all the way home in the car - very catchy! This movie is 80 minutes long (I think) and they sat through it with great excitement and really connected to the characters.They loved the ants - won't go into any spoilers but it was a really funny movie and I could hear some cackle from all the grown ups. They went up to the front to dance to the song, although it was too short! The sad moments were quite sad, but needed to form an engaging story. I have German friends who tell me she is their Mickey Mouse and I think she's definitely a character they're growing attached to! So proud this was made in Australia - bring on the Aussie talent!

I was lucky enough to attend the Australian premiere of Maya the Bee Movie and cannot express how much my kids (aged 7 and 4 years old) and I ADORED this movie.

It's a beautiful story about a feisty little bee called Maya who doesn't fit in with the other bees in the hive. Maya goes on a journey of self- discovery, meeting lots of insect friends along the way. The main message of the movie is the importance of BEE-ing yourself: something which is important for kids to see from a strong female character who is neither a princess or a wizard (thank goodness!).

My little ones were fully captivated for 80 minutes straight (shock horror) and talked about their favourite scenes and characters in the car on the way home. The filmmakers did a superb job making the film colourful and appealing with gorgeous CG animation, and the story is really something special that everyone can relate to.

I strongly urge all parents who have little ones to go see Maya the Bee Movie - the 'buzz' surrounding the film is well deserved!

Maya is one of the most delightful and sparkling characters to come out of a kids film in a long time. In a way reminiscent of Miyazaki's youngest heroine's this little bee stands up to authority and keeps just asking questions.

The movie is spectacularly beautiful. There is a rich meadow world that comes alive. My two girls were spellbound for the whole film. The 4 year old can get scared easily in films (the poster of The Boxtrolls was enough to scare her) but she was happily cheering Maya on. The whole bug world comes alive in song and dance that is so charming - the girls were singing all afternoon.

There was enough humour for grownups too. There are a couple of ants (voiced by the Umbilical Bros) that really steal the show. Jackie Weaver as evil Buzzlina had just the right amount of scare and fun in her portrayal. The other voices, Richard Roxburgh and Noah Taylor, etc. did such a great job.

Take your kids, it's a great time at the movies.

No violence whatsoever, an uplifting message (hatred comes from fear and fear comes from lack of understanding), an intelligent story, beautiful pictures and animation, humor adjusted to the level of small kids. I found not a single flaw in this movie. My 3 and a half year old daughter was delighted.

Of course, and this results from the above, adults should prepare themselves for an hour and a half nap. This is not "Shrek", people. But this is no reason to lower the rating of a movie that is clearly directed at preschoolers.

Some people complain that they did not find it as amusing as the original Maya series 30 years ago. Of course they didn't! They were 4 years old back then and now they are 30+. So how could they feel the same emotions?

My rating: 10/10

I loved this film. The story was great, the characters were lovable and I thought the message of the film (be yourself and just because someone is different from you doesn't mean you can't be friends) was a great one for little kids. It never resorted to being too corny either which I appreciated. The voice actors did a great job and the whole cinema was laughing out loud in parts (the ant soldiers played by the umbilical brothers were particularly great). I even got a little teary near the end! A movie that is enjoyable for both kids and parents a like.

I think the crew and the director did a fantastic job and I would recommend this to anyone with little ones in their life. Maya the bee is this year's Finding Nemo!