The Beekeeper and his Son

Filmmaker Diedie Weng’s cinema verité-style scrutiny of life on a traditional honey farm in northern China plays like a mix of anthropology film and sitcom (albeit a rather painful sitcom). Old Lao Yu has been keeping bees, among other animals, all his life in the countryside. His eldest son Maofu, returning from college after a year of failing to find employment in modern industrialized China, dutifully does chores around the hives and rustic homestead, but—as Lao loudly complains—the young man’s heart isn’t in it all (the son, indeed, would rather try sales and marketing). Then again, Lao loudly complains about almost everything, including his wife, his woebegone 96-year-old mother, bee parasites, and the ravages of old age on his own mind and body (at times he even berates the unseen film team). Meanwhile, an ornery goose, like the beekeeper’s id, wanders through the proceedings at will, bullying and scene-stealing as though it owns the place. Behind the loose narrative lies the familiar themes of generational differences, East/West values, and changing times (old Lao’s room is dominated by a Mao poster), made fresh by the setting (and the goose). Recommended. Aud: C, P. (C. Cassady)