Educational Media Reviews Online

Bees are graceful and industrious. They are unique and recognizable, and their contribution to plant reproduction would be nearly impossible to replace. All of this, yet they seem so fragile and mysterious when they die off abruptly in a mysterious phenomenon known as colony collapse disorder.

More Than Honey is a story about bees and beekeepers, and their influence on our shared future. It describes the plight of bees through imagery, narrative and science. The visuals are crisp and stunning. When the camera looks down at a beekeeper from a cliff-top hive, it feels easier to identify with the bees than with the human. When we watch a close-up of a queen bee and a male drone copulating mid-flight, it almost seems intrusive.

Given that this film focuses on bees, the fact that the human story has a hint of intercultural complexity is a pleasant surprise. At first, the comparisons between small family beekeepers in Switzerland and industrialized honey farmers in the United States seem to play too much on stereotypes. But when the scope expands to China, Australia, and back to an independent beekeeper in the United States, it becomes clear that the contrasts are being used for a different reason. No matter the beekeeper, bees around the world are disappearing.

Although the cause of colony collapse disorder is not fully understood, a lot is known about bee behavior. The film nimbly glides through its scientific backstory, showing how bees describe the route to a new pollen source, identify the best location for a nest, and nurture the fertilized egg of a new queen. These short insertions of biology, animal behavior and neuroscience wrap more urgency around the question of why the bees are dying.

With artistry that is both rich and precise, More Than Honey teaches us about bees, humans and the ecosystem that binds us together. Highly recommended for junior high through adult audiences.