The Beekeeper (Prime Video) 2024

This small unassuming movie starring Jason Statham of Transporter and The Mechanic fame became a surprising favourite of mine when it premiered in 2024. 

 Think John Wick but instead of a dog, it is the death of a kindly old neighbour that sets off Jason Statham’s Beekeeper character to unleashes his particular set of skills against an internet credit scam operation whose ties run all the way up to the US government. 

What ensues is thrilling action and suspense with a hint of dark humour courtesy of David Ayer (End of Watch, Bright) and Kurt Wimmer (Equilibrium, Salt). 

 I came away from this movie feeling a weird sense of catharsis. Like Superman taking down greedy corporate scumbags or Captain America fighting Nazi supervillains, Beekeeper is catharsis showing an unstoppable hero figure tearing down a seemingly untouchable “villain”. 

 In this case, it is the dark industry of organised credit scams. They are everywhere, preying on the old and vulnerable, cheating millions from grandparents or lonely neighbours, and then celebrating their greed and ill gotten gains. It was nice to see this sort of thing get the comeuppance even if it is in a work of fiction.

 Jason Statham plays to his strengths as more of an action scowler than a character actor. He basically channeling “unassuming badass” throughout the movie. Does he come across as too unstoppable? Perhaps. Does he feel like a flat character who never changes his facial expression? Definitely.

But I’ll be damned if it doesn’t feel good when he’s setting an entire credit scams call centre ablaze or tying an unrepentant criminal mastermind to a pickup truck and running him off a bridge. 

 There are some nice twist and turns in the plot as expected of a Kurt Wimmer script. We get some hints as to the true nature of the Beekeeper and his history without completely dismantling that sense of mystery about him. We also get an insight into the “gang culture” of these white collar credit scam criminals; gang culture being a pet topic for Directors David Ayer. 

 Overall it was an enjoyable time without a single boring moment. Nicely paced, beautifully shot, maybe a few instances of spotty CGI explosions but those are just minor nitpicks. I highly recommend this movie as a must watch, and doubly so if you are as cheesed off as I am with illegal internet money scams.