← Back to results
Tell It to the Bees
2019 106 min United Kingdom 12+
★6.4
Romance, Drama
Director: Annabel Jankel
Trailers
EN
Teaser
EN
EN
Description
Dr. Jean Markham returns to the town she left as a teenager to take over her late father's medical practice. When a school-yard scuffle lands Charlie in her surgery, she invites him to visit the hives in her garden and tell his secrets to the bees, as she once did. The new friendship between the boy and the bee keeper brings his mother Lydia into Jean's world.
Starring
Billy Boyd
Actor
Gregor Selkirk
Actor
Anna Paquin
Actor
Awards
2 wins & 6 nominations total
Key opinion
Tell It to the Bees offers a visually atmospheric and well-acted exploration of 1950s Scottish social constraints. While the performances ground the central romance, the narrative suffers from an uneven script that struggles to balance its ambitious themes with a rushed execution.
| Cinematography | Cinematography by Bartosz Nawazek creates a strong, evocative, and atmospheric visual style that captures the 1950s setting. | |
| Acting | The lead performances from Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger provide a solid emotional foundation for the central love story. | |
| Theme | The film attempts to address significant societal ills—such as homophobia and abuse—but ultimately explores these complex themes only in a superficial, marginal manner. | |
| Pacing | The brisk pacing and swift narrative structure result in an unsatisfying, misplaced climax that fails to resolve key character arcs. |