2008 Woodie Awards
Seinfeld's 'Bee Movie' no sweet pot of honey
Andy Bockelman
Issue date: 11/5/07 Section: Entertainment
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Although it has been nearly a decade since the finale of his sitcom, Jerry Seinfeld is still just as big a name as ever, doing stand-up, making cartoons about flying insects, yadda-yadda-yadda…
"Bee Movie" is the perfect example of how the comedian has been as busy as one of the title bugs.
Barry B. Benson (voiced by Seinfeld) is a bee unlike any other; unfortunately, this is a liability in his hive. Barry's excitement about his college graduation immediately leads to depression when he learns that every job in the hive is essentially the same: honey production. Wanting to see the outside world, he tags along with a group of pollen collectors, only to receive unfriendly treatment from the humans of New York City.
However, a florist named Vanessa (Renée Zellweger) shows him some compassion and once she gets over the concept of a talking bee, the two of them become friends. Hanging around with Vanessa, Barry eventually discovers that people are huge consumers of honey. Outraged by the fact that bees are being exploited in this fashion, he decides to sting the honey industry with a lawsuit.
As co-writer and producer, Seinfeld brings a lot to the table in addition to his naturally comical tone. Zellweger is pitch-perfect as Vanessa, but she is just one in the swarm of A-list voices. Matthew Broderick voices Barry's best friend Adam, whose attitude about his future within the hive is the complete opposite of Barry's.
Frequent "Seinfeld" guest star Patrick Warburton adds his usual distinctive bellow as Vanessa's repellent boyfriend, Ken, who believes the best place for a bee is in the treads of his Timberlands. John Goodman is decidedly hammy as corpulent, old-fashioned southern lawyer Layton T. Montgomery, the defending attorney for the honey corporations. The list of stars goes on, including Kathy Bates, Chris Rock, Rip Torn, Oprah Winfrey and more.
The movie has been hyped aggressively, especially in the last month with Seinfeld making a huge return to NBC by way of a variety of short sketches detailing the production history. All this buildup has proved to be somewhat damaging for the cartoon.
"Bee Movie" is the perfect example of how the comedian has been as busy as one of the title bugs.
Barry B. Benson (voiced by Seinfeld) is a bee unlike any other; unfortunately, this is a liability in his hive. Barry's excitement about his college graduation immediately leads to depression when he learns that every job in the hive is essentially the same: honey production. Wanting to see the outside world, he tags along with a group of pollen collectors, only to receive unfriendly treatment from the humans of New York City.
However, a florist named Vanessa (Renée Zellweger) shows him some compassion and once she gets over the concept of a talking bee, the two of them become friends. Hanging around with Vanessa, Barry eventually discovers that people are huge consumers of honey. Outraged by the fact that bees are being exploited in this fashion, he decides to sting the honey industry with a lawsuit.
As co-writer and producer, Seinfeld brings a lot to the table in addition to his naturally comical tone. Zellweger is pitch-perfect as Vanessa, but she is just one in the swarm of A-list voices. Matthew Broderick voices Barry's best friend Adam, whose attitude about his future within the hive is the complete opposite of Barry's.
Frequent "Seinfeld" guest star Patrick Warburton adds his usual distinctive bellow as Vanessa's repellent boyfriend, Ken, who believes the best place for a bee is in the treads of his Timberlands. John Goodman is decidedly hammy as corpulent, old-fashioned southern lawyer Layton T. Montgomery, the defending attorney for the honey corporations. The list of stars goes on, including Kathy Bates, Chris Rock, Rip Torn, Oprah Winfrey and more.
The movie has been hyped aggressively, especially in the last month with Seinfeld making a huge return to NBC by way of a variety of short sketches detailing the production history. All this buildup has proved to be somewhat damaging for the cartoon.
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