Customer Reviews

Bumblebee Flies Away [VHS]

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have to say the first reason I thought of picking this movie up was Elijah Wood. As a performer myself, I realized his talent years ago when he starred as Huck Finn back in 1993. I knew then that his was a carreer to watch. I followed Elijah through the good movies and the bad until yesterday when I picked up "Bumblebee." What would you do if you had to literally forget your past in order to have a future. Barney Snow (Elijah Wood) is faced with exactly this decision in this heart tugging drama.

Barney snow wakes up in hospital for terminally ill youths, not remembering how he got there, or even what his name is. His only choice is to trust the information he is given by Dr. Herriman or "The Handyman" (Jeneane Garafolo). Along his journey, Barney meets and befriends several of the patients as well as one patients extremely good-looking sisters named Cassie (Rachel Leigh Cook). THe two develop a typical teen love at first sight relationship that will leave any teenage girl sobbing by the end. Of course, I sobbed at the end too, but not for the love story.

Elijah Wood's performance is yet again almost flawless. I felt for his character almost right from the start and his boyish features truly make you believe that this 20 year old man is actually a 15 year old boy.

Rachel Leigh Cook's role in this film was a little beefed up in promos for publicity reasons but nonetheless, her performance is excellent. She brings out the best in Barney, whether he knows it or not.

THe only dissapointment I had was this movie was Jenean Garafolo. I felt like she was reading her lines form a poster board and she really didn't feel like being there at all.

I lied, my other dissapontment with this film was the score. The music was too sporatic, to little and far between and altoghether wrong for this script.

For those two reasons I have givin this movie four stars. The performance of the actors makes this film better than its far fetched plot. If you are a fan of great acting, watch this film.

I admit I rented Bumblebee because Janeane Garafalo and Elijah Wood are in it. I wasn't sure what to expect, but was soon absorbed in the story of Barney Snow (Wood) a teenager with no memory who has agreed to participate in experimental therapy administered by Garafalo and a group of doctors at an Institute housing terminally ill young people. Barney is the only person there who is not dying, but he is having haunting visions of being in a car accident. He befriends a couple of the patients who turn out to be as vitally important to Barney and the audience as Barney himself. We are drawn in and held tight as this movie slowly opens doors for Barney and reveals the truth about his past and his identity. I found the entire last quarter of the film gripping and poignant. I am sorry I did not get to experience this film in a theatre properly, but it translates well on video nonetheless. It blew me away. My only complaint is Rachael Leigh Cook as Barney's love interest and teh sister of a patient at the Institute. She does not seem to have much to do with the story at all, which is mildly annoying. I would have liked to see her character have more depth and purpose especially since she interacts with Barney closely in the last half of the film. Overall, The Bumblebee Flies Anyway is a sweet film that stays with you long after the credits roll and I am going to purchase it as soon as the price lowers from 100 dollars:)FYI: The title refers to the bumblebee's ability to fly even though it should not be able to due to its body size and tiny wing span.

Truly one of the most wonderful films I can remember seeing, The Bumblebee Flies Anyway is about a teenager who has very little memory of his past. All Barney Snow can remember is a car crash, what he believes to be the source of his amnesia, and his mother. Though he has been brought to a facility where experiments in medical technology are done on others, he is alone here in that he is the only one who is not dying. Despite the doctor's warnings that he should stay detached from the others, Barney finds himself making close friends with Billy and Allie, two other boys from the facility who are dying, and though he finds it difficult at first, also with Mazzo, a boy slightly older than himself who is filled with anger at the fact that he is dying. Even with his friends, Barney still feels alone here, that is until he meets Cassie, Mazzo's sister, and realizes there is hope still for his future. With the help of Billy and Allie, Barney builds a car from junkyard parts to help bring back memories of the car crash that brings such vivid nightmares. When he discovers the truth about himself and what has really happened to him, Barney realizes he himself is like a bumblebee; against the odds, he has survived, just as the bumblebee is not supposed to be able to fly, but does so anyway; some believe the theory of mind over matter is involved. I won't give away anything about the ending, only that it is beautifully done, wonderfully acted, and still makes me cry even after all the times I've watched it. Elijah Wood is perfect in the role of Barney Snow, Rachael Leigh Cook is great as Cassie, the soundtrack will stay in your mind for weeks, and the story, though at first it may seem like just another teen movie, is so much more; it's a story of life and death and the human spirit. I would highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes Elijah Wood and/or stories that touch the heart, but don't bother renting it first- you'll spend more money renting it over and over than you would just buying it. I know I have.

To be honest, I only watched this the first time with my friend because it had Elijah Wood in it. Then I realized it was so much more than Elijah; it was a story of life, and death, and love, and how the human spirit can triumph over greater odds. Beautifully acted and directed, and unlike most modern movies, it is stunning without any computer graphics and explosions. Instead of being nothing but eye candy (unless you count Elijah of course!) it is a movie that touched my heart and made me think about what would be going through my mind if I were in his place. The music is also wonderfully done, it fits the mood and stayed with me for two weeks after I saw the movie. The Bumblebee Flies Anyway is the only movie besides Lord of the Rings that has ever made me cry, and the only one that's made me cry three times in the space of an hour. An absolutely beautiful movie, and definitely a must-see.

This film is about a Barney Snow (Elijah Wood) who's lost all his memory of his family and is currently living in sort of home for sick and handicapped children, under supervision by doctors and such. Rachel Leigh Cook co-stars as his love interest he meets through her brother, Burto, who is also at this hospital home. The story unwinds as Snow figures out exactly why he's lost his memory (and it's not at all predictable).
The pros in this film are the lead characters, all the children in the film are excellent (except for that little black kid, who can't act very well) and the story is unpredictable and pretty original. It's the type of soothing cute story which will leave you with a feeling of calmness after you've seen it, mostly because of all the locations the movie is in; a quiet, quaint, suburban town in the middle of autumn everyone dreams of growing up and living in.
The cons for one are the pace of the film; it's not for the impatient, because even though this movie is only about 1:30 hours long, it feels like a lot more simply because there is just too much dialog and quiet moments and the film just seems to move too slow. My g/f was bored watching it, it's almost as if they just threw a lot of stuff in to take up some more time. Jeanine Garofallo was obviously doing this one for the money, her character is not comedic in any aspect, she is flat and doesn't seem to be trying very hard in terms of acting abilities, if she was trying to showcase her dramatic side, she picked the wrong film.
So why did I give this film 4 out of 5 stars? Mostly because of the ending (mostly with the Burto character), even though it's kind of hard to grasp (I still don't really get it), it has a sense of fundemental beauty, whether it's the music, the 3 boys situation, or whatever, it just seemed to take me back to when I was a pre-teen and felt that the whole world was at my fingertips, and that there was hope for the future or anything for that matter. Sure the pacing is slow, and story is a bit proposterous, but underneath it all lies a beautiful film and concept, just a bit misdirected.

I didn't expect much from this movie, but it turned out to be sweet, well-written, well-acted, and had presented some ideas that are worth thinking about. Occasional lines of dialogue felt clunky, but overall it all flowed nicely. And while the story did seem a little unbelievable at times, its nice to see a film that tries the unexpected.
Elijah Wood and Rachael Leigh Cook were very charismatic, and ultimately believable. It was also nice to see their relationship develop gradually throughout the film. In the the supporting cast, Janeane Garrolfalo was a bit wooden, but Joe Perrino as a teenager with bone cancer, and Roger Rees as the doctor added nice touches.

Barney Snow is part of the Bumblebee Project. He has volunteered to undergo a new type of therapy that will help him rediscover his past. You see Barney has no memories of who he is, his family or his past. He's hoping that Dr. Harriman (aka: The Handyman) can help him in his quest. The therapy he must undergo takes place in a hospital for terminally ill patients. While searching for his past, he finds that his present is much more interesting. Having been told not to consort with the terminally ill patients, Barney finds he has more in common with them than he ever could have imagined. Helping him deal with all of this are Dr. Harriman and his newly found friends Billy, Mike, Mazzo and Cassie.
Convincing performances by Elijah Wood as Barney, Janeane Garofalo as Dr. Harriman, Joseph Perrino as Mazzo, and Rachel Leigh Cook as Cassie. Heart-wrenching story that you'll need plenty of Kleenex for. Makes me want to rush out and buy the novel on which this movie is based.

An enjoyable & romantic must-see film for fans of Elijah Wood and the very appealing Rachael Leigh cook, preposterous story line notwithstanding. In the hands of a less capable lead actor, Wood's role as amnesiac Barney Snow would have been a howler. The premise makes little sense, and when you finally figure out what's really going on, it makes even less. Think of it as a science fiction movie, and you'll find the whole-hog scientific leaps and stretches much less aggravating. Janeane Garofalo, an otherwise wonderful actress, is wasted on a very flat role here as a doctor fixated on "detachment". Still, I'd recommend it to any Elijah fans.

I rented this movie a day ago because, I don't why. I watched it and enjoyed every second of it. i immediately ordered it because i can't find it anywhere. One of the best Independent-esque films I've ever seen. Has elements from other movies such as "Memento" and "Abre los Ojos" (being remade as "Vanilla Sky" by Cameron Crowe) Albeit this movie has a more Human aspect. Would you be willing to live with no memory? or die with it? The last half hour of this movie is beautiful and moving. Some of the flashback sequences are a bit incredulous in look, but hey, its a low budget, high quality film. Definitely worth a viewing if not purchased.

I've always had a thing against films I had never heard of. I never saw a preview for this one, so I automatically assumed it would be weird. The only reason I got it was because I've been in love with Elijah Wood since I was eight.Was it weird? Not at all.The plot is amazing,the story's amazing, the whole idea is amazing .
The other people who have reviewed this movie have done an excellent job at summarizing it, so I won't bore you. All I have to say is the acting is wonderful (especially Elijah, Joe Perrino and I thought Janeane Garofalo's portrayal was very good especially since she's usually in comedic roles)The score really stuck out to me, and definitely added to the emotion.
I tell yeah, I've seen this movie three times now and I still have a pulled heartstring. For any of you out there who have doubts about this movie, don't. It is a beautiful make-you- want-to-roll-up-in-a-ball-and-cry sort of movie...I loved it...