Entertainment
Raunchy 70s Sci-Fi Cult Classic Redefines The Term Body Count
By Robert Scucci
| Updated
As somebody with an overactive imagination and a penchant for movies, it’s easy to think of a million different horrific ways to die. I’ve watched enough sci-fi and horror throughout my life to worry about doppelgangers, rifts in the space and time continuum, seemingly invincible masked murderers, and ritualistic sacrifices, to name a few ways to unwillingly part from this mortal coil. Before feasting my eyes on 1973’s Invasion of the Bee Girls, the idea of being seduced to death by a bunch of bug-eyed vixens that read high on a Geiger counter never occurred to me. Now that radiation-infused bee serum is another way to go out, at least I can rest assured knowing I’ll go out with a bang should I ever find myself in a similar predicament.
Invasion of the Bee Girls, given its ridiculous setup, is a fantastic little sexploitation film if you’re wondering what I’m buzzing about. If you like facing mortality with a side of honey, this is a great film to enjoy so long as nobody is looking over your shoulder.
Death By Snu Snu Long Before Futurama
Invasion of the Bee Girls introduces us to Special Agent Neil Agar (William Smith), who is tasked with investigating a string of mysterious deaths in Peckham, California. Though the nature of these deaths is ambiguous at first, it doesn’t take long for investigators to realize that all of the victims are men, and they’ve all suffered from sexual exhaustion that resulted in heart failure. Working closely with Brandt Research’s head librarian, Julie Zorn (Victoria Vetri), Neil teams up with the local authorities to figure out exactly what’s going on, while the lab’s head sex researcher, Henry Murger (Wright King), urges citizens to maintain abstinence, only to be met with ridicule.
Looking for a logical reason why men are dropping left and right, Neil places his focus on a beautiful and seductive entomologist named Susan Harris (Anitra Ford), whose primary area of study is bees. With no evidence to back his claims, Neil is stuck between a rock and a hard place, but he has reason to believe that the sexual habits of honeybees are being synthesized and replicated in Susan’s lab with nefarious intent. Hopefully, Neil and Julie can put their heads together and stop these alleged bee women once and for all.
No Honey Without A Sting
Balancing its 85-minute runtime between old-fashioned police work and the sexual violence taking place just beneath everyone’s radar, Invasion of the Bee Girls should be viewed as an exploitation film and nothing else. It’s a racy, raunchy, dangerous, and thrilling adventure that escalates quickly and leaves you wanting more.
If you ever see big, black eyes staring you down the next time you’re on a date, you’ll be thankful you watched this one because you’ll be privy to all the necessary warning signs of being seduced to death before the evening is over. Given how scary science can be when used with malicious intent, you never know what kind of serums are being cooked up behind closed doors, and watching Invasion of the Bee Girls to arm yourself with knowledge may very well save your life one day.
Invasion of the Bee Girls is streaming for free on Tubi.
