Aug 06

Bee gets an ‘A’

I went into “Bee Movie” tonight with, frankly, low expectations, and enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. It is not a classic in the way that the Pixar movies are, and it’s loaded with pop culture references which will go over children’s heads and which will seem dated five years from now. But it’s goofy, good-natured fun, and some of the pop culture stuff is quite funny, especially Larry King and Ray Liotta poking good-natured fun at their own stereotypes, and Sting — yes, Sting — taking grief from the bees for his stage name. Jerry Seinfeld, who starred in, conceived, co-produced and co-wrote the movie, was obviously having a great time.

And even if they missed some of the humor, the kids at church tonight still found plenty to enjoy about the movie.

My favorite line comes right at the end of the movie. A mosquito character voiced by Chris Rock, who had been seen earlier in the movie, suddenly pops up as a partner in the main character’s law firm.

“You’re a lawyer too?” asks a surprised potential client.

“Ma’am,” answers the mosquito, “I was already a bloodsucking parasite. All I needed was a briefcase!”

Our county attorney, whom I see each month at county commission movies, collects lawyer jokes, and I’ll have to see if he’s heard this one.

Aug 06

Here’s the buzz

From September through May, my church has a Wednesday night program centered around a catered meal, which is surrounded by various activities including a Bible study, choir practices, children’s activities and what have you.

Some people have wished we could carry the program through the summer months, but with warm weather, longer days and vacations, our attendance drops off below the minimum required by the caterer.

Last year, however, we did start a different Wednesday night program during August: “Movie and a Message.” Each Wednesday night during August, we have a family-friendly movie, a light meal (sandwiches and munchies) prepared by the church, and a very brief devotion or activity emphasizing themes from the movie. Tonight, we’ll start the second season of this with “Bee Movie.” I’m looking forward to “Evan Almighty,” which I never got around to seeing, in two weeks.

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