Jason Statham is back doing what he does best, beating up the bad guys in The Beekeeper. This time around he is avenging the death of his elderly neighbour who takes her own life after being swindled by a phone scam company. Statham kicks into a one-man revenge machine, with plenty of the expected carnage.
Directed by David Ayer and starring Statham, The Beekeeper has two prime ingredients for a compelling action thriller. Unfortunately the film never quite does enough to stand out from its competition. The big problem with the revenge catalyst of The Beekeeper is that it is a little hard to fully grasp exactly why Statham’s character is so invested in his neighbours’ plight. The pair only share one fleeting conversation. Granted it highlights a shared history and alludes to them being close, but without much set up, the emotional impact is lost. In fact, The Beekeeper is a film where watching the trailer might actually help as it distils the essence of their limited screen time far better.
Although the reasons for Statham’s vendetta fail to fully come off, the star is at least on top form in the action stakes. His screen time in Expend4bles was a little sad; his fights with Iko Uwais were pitiful. Here he is back in the top dog position and dispatches the evil scammers with brutal finesse. The action star looks to be having fun, and Ayer has a similar wry tone to the set pieces. One particular scene set around a bridge is magnificent over-the-top wickedness.
In the wake of John Wick, one cannot help but compare new revenge action thrillers to the franchise and The Beekeeper is guilty of being a less exciting knock-off. There are several similar plot points – the revenge plot, Statham’s character not being the humble person that people think he is, and the slimy rich kid. Stepping into the Alfie Allen role is Josh Hutcherson, who in the wake of Five Nights at Freddy’s success, is on a high. Thankfully the film does shift out of Wick’s shadow towards the end, although in doing so, strays into 24 territory.
All of these niggles would be fine were the pacing to be better. The first half of the film has a punchy, almost break-neck speed to it. There is little chance to catch a breath and were The Beekeeper to maintain this momentum it would be a serious contender. However, around the halfway point the pacing halts entirely. A couple of clunky expositional scenes, complete with the worst bee puns since the Wicker Man remake, push the film off its tracks. From there the film struggles to get back to where it began. Time begins to drag, and upon arrival at the climax, it’s hard to be as invested as one should be.
A grand step up from Expend4bles 4, The Beekeeper still is not quite the hit that Jason Statham needs to reassert himself as an action champion.
The Beekeeper
Summary
With the John Wick franchise still very present in the minds of action fans, The Beekeeper struggles to make it out of the other films’ shadow.
The Beekeeper is in UK cinemas now.
