Why so much hype?

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Just because there are worse movies with similar themes are still made today doesn't buy much credit for this one ... yes, it might have attracted some attention back in the day but i'd say this is BAD even for its time! glad the director admitted it himself too ...

Freddie Francis was one of the less reliable directors working in horror during the 60s and 70s (often for Hammer and Amicus): at his best, he gave us enjoyable Tales From The Crypt and the serviceable Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, but at his worst he was responsible for The Creeping Flesh, Torture Garden, Trog, The Vampire Happening, and this boring pile of drivel, The Deadly Bees.Suzanna Leigh stars as pretty pop singer Vicki Robbins, who, suffering from exhaustion, goes to stay at a farm on Seagull Island to recuperate. While there, she begins to suspect that the farmer (Guy Doleman) is breeding a strain of deadly bees that will attack anyone who has come in contact with a special serum. With the help of friendly bee-keeper Manfred (Frank Finlay) she tries to find proof of his wrong-doings…Featuring leaden direction from Francis, a predictable script that holds few surprises, and some truly dreadful special effects, The Deadly Bees is utterly abysmal from start to finish, offering absolutely nothing in the way of suspense or scares, no matter how urgent or loud the music gets. In the end, Francis resorts to some cheap titillation to try and keep the viewer from nodding off by having Leigh wander around in her bra for a while, which I'm all in favour of, but it doesn't stop the film from being a disaster.

"Psycho" author Bloch co-writes and the renowned director / cinematographer Francis directs this entry into killer bee cinema that predates the 1978 flicks "The Swarm" and "The Bees" by almost a dozen years. It may work for viewers if they approach it as a camp film but the truth is, it's too silly to be all that successful. The bee attack scenes really aren't bad (the actors certainly sell the hell out of the material), but they'd be better if the (not so) special effects weren't so hilariously unconvincing. The story, based on a novel by Gerald Heard, deals with a pop singer named Vicki Robbins (Suzanna Leigh), who suffers a mental breakdown and is sent to the idyllic, rustic community of Seagull Island for much needed R & R. Unfortunately, things there are going to get ugly as rival bee keepers engage in cutthroat competition. Bees are being sent to do some serious damage to various unlucky human victims. All in all, this viewer would consider this a lesser effort for Amicus Studios. The company always fared best with their omnibus features; their single story features were never quite as strong. Still, this is all fairly watchable regardless; sincere performances really help a lot. The pretty Leigh is engaging as a resourceful lead, but the show really belongs to Frank Finlay and Guy Doleman as the warring farmers, H.W. Manfred and Ralph Hargrove respectively. A fine supporting cast includes Catherine Finn as Hargroves' neglected wife, Hammer and Amicus regular Michael Ripper in a solid turn as part time barman and part time lawman David Hawkins, James Cossins as an investigating coroner, and the appealing Katy Wild as the helpful Doris Hawkins. There's also the chance to see a musical performance by rock group The Birds (not to be confused with American group The Byrds), featuring a young Ron Wood. The movie further benefits from a good score composed by Wilfred Josephs and a reasonably rousing and fiery finish. While it isn't particularly good, it isn't all that bad, delivering some fun moments and coming in at a short enough 84 minute running time. Five out of 10.

A London pop star suffering exhaustion is sent to convalesce in the country-side where she encounters a toxic mix of deranged ambition and a hybridized strain of killer bees that threatens not only her fragile sanity, but also her life. Leigh is a relative lightweight amongst her accomplished co-stars, with Doleman as the no-nonsense farmer and Finlay as his eccentric neighbour jostling for position as the dominant bee keeper. It's a rather unusual premise on which to base a complex whodunit, but provides a surprisingly strong basis for the mystery to unfold. Doleman's strained relationship with his apparently invalided wife, and the curiosities of relationships in an isolated rural community serve as an intervening backdrop to the troubled Leigh and her increasing concern at the strange events she witnesses.Veteran Hammer-horror director Francis has crafted an eerie little mystery, lacking none of the essential ingredients of a conventional mystery, with the notable exception of an impartial investigator. Most of the detective work is done by the protagonists, drip feeding the naive Leigh with twisted facts to conjure alibis and implicate the culprit. Francis does a fine job of concealing the mystery, carefully playing the doubt card, and tempering clues with red herrings and faux staging.Opening to the groovy fusion of art-house pop culture, Leigh's character is framed as a victim of excesses in a progressive London scene (there's an implied drug addiction, but it's vague) and from there, the film juxtaposes to the opposite extreme - an ultra conservative, socially incestuous rural setting, a deep isolation both geographically and socially for the central character. It's an engaging tussle between old-fashioned values and an emerging modern liberalism.Slated by critics, the film almost cheats itself with its bold title, because it's not ostensibly a movie of this genre. The bees are present as a vehicle only, and certainly they have comparably little to offer by way of shock value. But the intrigue that the many layers build, is compelling. Try it from a different angle and you may like what you find.