Bee Movie

Achingly slow and surprisingly unfunny, "Bee Movie" lacks any buzz and is completely without sting. Okay, you knew I had to have some bee jokes. Unfortunately, that's really about the same level of comedy that this movie carries as well.

Starring the voice of Jerry Seinfeld, "Bee" follows Barry B. Benson, a worker bee who would prefer to explore the world outside the hive rather than be stuck in the same job for the rest of his life. While getting his first taste of the Big City, Barry meets Vanessa (Renee Zellweger), a human woman who quickly adapts to the idea of a talking bee. Barry also discovers that humans are capitalizing on bee-produced honey, even keeping some bees in mass production facilities. Being the activist that he is, Barry takes the entire honey industry to court in order for bees to be relieved of their honey-making responsibilities.

Bored yet? By this point in the movie, so were the parents and little kids in the theater with me. "Bee Movie" spends two thirds of its time focusing on the court hearing and Barry's case against the humans. Meanwhile, the mildly entertaining parts are when the story focuses on life inside the hive. The humans, and Barry's interaction with them, is completely uninteresting and unengaging.

The animation looks like a preschool animated cartoon, the characters are not played up, and it moves at the pace of a snail. Chris Rock gets the best line at the very end of the movie as he explains why he, as a mosquito, is perfect working as a lawyer. Get it? Blood-sucking parasite = lawyer? Sorry Uncle Greg.

So there, I gave you the best line in an otherwise uninspired movie. No need to see it now. "Bee Movie" disappoints and gets a D.

"Bee Movie" is rated PG with a running time of 90 minutes.