Last night Hubby and I netflixed The Secret Life of Bees. He 'owed' me a chick flick after his 10,000 B.C. debacle. :)
The film is based, of course, on Sue Monk Kidd's best-selling novel of the same name. Set in South Carolina in 1964, it's the tale of Lily Owens (Dakota Fanning), a 14-year-old girl who is haunted by the blurred memory of the day her mother was killed. To escape her troubled life with her jerk of a father, Lily flees with her caregiver and only friend Rosaleen (Jennifer Hudson) to Tiburon, South Carolina -- a town that holds the secret to her mother's past. She meets up with the independent and intelligent Boatwright sisters (Queen Latifah, Sophie Okonedo and Alician Keys), and finds solace and meaning in their world of bee-keeping and the Black Madonna.
The Black Madonna, central to both the novel and the film, served several functions. It symbolized both mothers and divine female power. It spoke to the importance of faith, of believing in something larger than oneself. And, it underscored the importance of telling our stories.
I preferred the novel, which seemed 'deeper' and somehow more real than the film, but The Secret Life of Bees was definitely good Netflix fare. Plus I rarely miss an opportunity to see a film that features Queen Latifah. She strikes me as very good "BFF" material, and Queen, if you are reading this, how about lunch next Tuesday?
7 comments:
Thank you for your thoughts. I think this movie is next up on "the list"...and now I want to read the book first.
Book versions rule...movie versions, not so much.
Loved the book, haven't seen the movie - but I love the actors in it - Queen Latifah is one of my favorite - I'll probably rent it soon since it's been a long time since I read the book and won't remember the differences :-)
Haven't read the book, nor seen the movie. Now I want to do both!
And I am so with you on Queen Latifah. Just LOVE her!
for sure queen latifah would tell you what's what... i think she'd punch the guy if he told her she looked like a call girl!
totally BFF material!
yes, hot cup, next time you go to that assisted living facility, you'll have to take queen latifah along!
I've been wondering how this movie would stand up. Thanks for posting a review.
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