Subject: REVIEW: WAX, OR THE DISCOVERY OF TELEVISION AMONG THE BEES

From: [email-masked] (Thomas E. Billings)
Date: 27 Feb 92 18:28:13 GMT

[Followups directed to rec.arts.movies.  -Moderator]

           WAX, OR THE DISCOVERY OF TELEVISION AMONG THE BEES
                  A film review by Thomas E. Billings
                   Copyright 1992 Thomas E. Billings

Synopsis:
A computer programmer and part-time beekeeper who lives in Alamogordo,
New Mexico is introduced to an alternative, electronic reality by his
bees.  The bees are really the souls of the future dead, and communicate
with the beekeeper via "bee television", projected telepathic images.
An inventive and innovative video that includes striking computer
graphics and special video effects.  Although the effects are repetitive
at times, the video should appeal to those with an interest in computer
graphics.  However, it's probably too weird for a general audience.

U.S.A., video, color, 1991, 85 minutes.
Director/Writer: David Blair.

     The video begins with the story of Jacob "Hive" Maker, who went to
Mesopotamia (Iraq) early in this century, and brought "Mesopotamian"
bees to England.  Later he moved to the U.S., and brought along his
bees.  The story then jumps to the present, with Jacob Maker's grandson
living and working in Alamogordo, New Mexico.  The grandson is a
computer programmer, working on flight weapons simulators.  He is
currently working on a helicopter simulator for the U.S. Army.

     In his spare time the grandson, also named Jacob Maker, takes care
of a number of hives of Mesopotamian bees, descendents of the bees his
grandfather brought back from Iraq.  He is mesmerized by the bees.
Slowly they open a communications link, "bee television", to their
world, which is another dimension, an alternate electronic reality.  Set
against a backdrop of missile shots and (beautiful!) computer graphics
from a flight simulator, the bees explain that weapons have souls too.

     Eventually the bees lead Jacob to a secret cave, under the Trinity
Atom Bomb test site in New Mexico.  To the physical eye, it is just a
cave.  But for the bees, it is a major center of their alternate
dimension or reality.  The story continues as Jacob seeks to accomplish
the task the bees have assigned him....

     The plot outline above is only a brief simplification; the complete
plot is rather more complicated.  The story frequently shifts from past
to present to future, from physical reality to the electronic reality of
the bees, and back again.  Despite the frequent shifts, the story
unfolds smoothly.

     I found the video to be enjoyable and interesting, and particularly
appreciated the extensive use of computer graphics and special effects.
The graphics are not as flashy as in TERMINATOR 2, but they are
interesting anyway.  Some of the special video effects are used to
excess, but this does not detract from the video too much.

     Some viewers may be overcome by the total weirdness of the video.
However, it is not a campy weirdness, and appears to be integral to the
story line.  The frequent time shifts may bother a few viewers,
particularly the shifts into the past, the relevancy of which is not
fully realized until the latter part of the video.

     I would recommend the video to people interested in computer
graphics and video art.  May also be of interest to some fans of science
fiction and fantasy.  Not recommended for a general audience.