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The Secret Life of Bees
Availability:
In Stock
Price:
$14.98
$6.24*
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| Part No: | B001NLJ3NU |
| Manufacturer: | 20th Century Fox |
| MFG Part: | FOXD2255632D |
| Customer Rating: | 4.5 / 5.0 |
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SET IN SOUTH CAROLINA IN 1964, IS THE MOVING TALE OF LILY OWENS (FANNING) A 14 YEAR-OLD GIRL WHO IS HAUNTED BY THE MEMORY OF HER LATE MOTHER (BURTON).
Headed by an all-star cast of women,
The Secret Life of Bees is the heartwarming and well-told story of a young girl who finds love and acceptance from a trio of independent sisters.
The Secret Life of Bees is based on the bestselling book of the same name by Sue Monk Kidd and centers around the plight of 14-year-old Lily (Dakota Fanning). Assuming the burden for her mother's premature death, she has a precarious relationship with her abusive father T. Ray (Paul Bettany). Lily's only friend is her caregiver Rosaleen (Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson). Set in South Carolina in 1964, when civil rights wasn't a given, Rosaleen's life is threatened by racists who'd just as soon see her dead than exercise her right to vote. Lily runs away with her to a town she believes may hold the secrets of her mother's life. There the pair meet the Boatwright sisters August (Queen Latifah), June (Alicia Keys) and May (Sophie Okonedo)--who produce the area's famous Black Madonna honey. They eventually provide Lily with the unconditional love she never felt she had and also show Rosaleen that being a black woman in the South doesn't mean she can't have a sense of worth.
The Secret Life of Bees doesn't try to pass itself off as a historical documentation of race relations in the 1960s. But the fictional slice of life still resonates because of the feelings of injustice that it stirs up. Though the film is written to show the disparity between blacks and whites, there is always a strong sense of hope, thanks to the lead actresses who bring empathy and dignity to their roles. Hudson exhibits some of the same quiet grace that Regina Taylor brought to her role as the family housekeeper in the superb TV series
I'll Fly Away. Latifah has the part of wise matriarch down pat, even when she's playing a sister rather than a mother. And it's clear that Fanning is making a seamless transition from kid to young adult roles. Whether she's giving an impassioned monologue or listening thoughtfully, Fanning brings nuance and intelligence to her role.
--Jae-Ha Kim
Stills from The Secret Life of Bees (Click for larger image)
| After Reading the Book, The Movie is a Perfect Companion | 2010-07-28 | 4 / 5 |
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| Great casting, location, 1964 setting & clothing; but most definitely read the book first. Without the emotional grounding, and character development details from the book, the movie is interesting but forgetful. As a companion to the book, this movie completes the richness of the story. The adaptation follows the book faithfully, except for two notable instances, but it should not detract. |
| Susan Monk Kidd-Secret Life of Bees | 2010-06-28 | 5 / 5 |
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| This movie is awesome. It does not exactly follow the book, but then, what movie does. It shows a great example of races working things out together. Get the book, or the audio first and then buy the film. All of them are keepers! |
| I've seen better............. | 2010-06-26 | 2 / 5 |
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| The movie wasn't that good. I can't honestly say what the problem was, but I wouldn't sit through it again. I will be selling it at my upcoming yard sale. |
| Two different ratings | 2010-06-14 | 4 / 5 |
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The movie is really sweet and has a good story line, but if you have arleady read the book, you will find the movie lacking. There seemed to be more that they could have done to dig a little deeper into the story from the book and bring that over into the movie. On that note I would give it 3 stars.
Now if you have never read the book, then you won't miss anything and therefore, it would probably get 4 stars. All great actors/actresses and a good story. The movie did follow the book pretty well, just left out a lot of detail.
My tip, go get the book and read it and get the rest of the story. |
| Good movie, but book is better | 2010-06-06 | 4 / 5 |
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| After reading the book, which I loved, I had to buy the movie. My thoughts before watching the movie is that it was miscast. I pictured that Queen Latifah should play the part of Rosalee. However, I have to say that, although young in age, Jennifer Hudson was very good as Rosalee. I thought that Queen Latifah was great as August Boatwright. Queen Latifah has to be one of the finest actresses around, not to mention, she's just beautiful. She lights up the movie. I thought that Dakota Fanning, although excellent in some parts of the movie, was very inconsistent. In some of the movie, I thought her acting was not good at all. However, I can't think of a young actress who would have fit the part as Lily. A few scenes in the movie were changed from the book. You will definitely enjoy the movie. However, the book is better. |
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