[REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

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Night457
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Night457 »   1 likes

forum.dvdtalk only says
Note: This Blu-ray contains both the Theatrical and the Director's Extended Cut of the film. The two versions are 1:49:49 and 1:53:51 respectfully, which amounts to a difference of a little over four minutes of subtly added material.
dvdcompare.net does not actually do one of its version comparisons on this title.

dvdbeaver does not detail the differences.

movie-censorship does not even have a listing.

What little I can find says it is just little bits and pieces added back in throughout.

Who volunteers to watch both versions side-by-side, pause when necessary to document the additions, and report back to us? :D C'mon, some of you have had this for 12 years, and I just heard of it.

In the meantime, I am downloading popdrome's release.
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by emuler »   1 likes

Do we even have a director's cut to compare?
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Night457 »   7 likes

Someone does.

ptguardian opened the thread on Jan 22, 2009 with
DiAMOND release
not mine
dmd-bees.avi [700.23 Mb]
I also found this same hash in an eMule search, so it is still "current" (but not downloading for me right now) and going by a different title:

Like this post to see ed2k links  [700.23 Mb]

Since it is an .avi, the file length is listed in the search -- 1:53:50.
This is the director's cut.

Then on page 2, ptguardian released a blu-ray rip that is "not the director's cut".

Then on April 05, 2009, katzenjammer followed up with
And the directors cut, only aXXo-rip:
The.Secret.Life.Of.Bees[2008][Director's.Cut]DvDrip-aXXo.[sharethefiles.com].avi [701.01 Mb]
This same hash is currently found in an eMule search under this title:

Like this post to see ed2k links  [701.01 Mb]

This one IS currently downloading for me.

idler was not sure it was actually the Director's Cut:
Not really. This version has exactly the length as ptguardian's post from January, 22nd - 1:53:50.
But that IS the DC. The theatrical is 1:49:49.

The movie has been released both on DVD and Blu-ray with both cuts.

In January 2009, Quickone said he has both versions of the film, yet he was the one asking what the differences were. (You quoted this post, emuler.) Quickone, I see you were still active at FLM in May of this year. Are you still here? Did you ever compare the 2 versions to figure out the differences? Is it indeed only slightly extended shots and a few additional lines of dialog? Or do we get non-stop profanity, graphic violence and nudity?

Or more likely, even if you DID compare them, I think it likely after 12 years that you do not remember the differences. I know that I would not after that long of a time.

ANYWAYS ... the DC is out there, even if it is in outdated quality. I do not have popdrome's latest upgrade yet, so I don't know which version it is. (popdrome, are you there? Can you say which?) Historically speaking, there are some FLM members who had the DC. And (ahem) it is the old-timers who have asked about the differences! Well guys, have you watched this more than once in the past 12 years? Did you compare?

I am just a Newbie to FLM and to this title, so I don't even know if it is any good. The only movies I can even think of with the lead actress are something with Sean Penn (didn't see it), something with Tom Cruise (will never see that) and The Dakota Fanning Rape Movie. I was too traumatized by that to check out any of her other movies until now. I am hoping this one is at least a little less harsh.
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by lildrm »   1 likes

Another Blu-ray rip avaiable on Ulozto:
https://uloz.to/file/9bfd2R21geCU/the-s ... E5oQEwMD==
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Nasuada »   2 likes

Night457 wrote: I am just a Newbie to FLM and to this title, so I don't even know if it is any good. The only movies I can even think of with the lead actress are something with Sean Penn (didn't see it), something with Tom Cruise (will never see that) and The Dakota Fanning Rape Movie. I was too traumatized by that to check out any of her other movies until now. I am hoping this one is at least a little less harsh.
I wonder that you so "traumatized" around Dakota Fanning Movies.
Dakota Fanning was for me the first little girl who open my eyes how good little ones can be acting in a movie. Well, my first Dakota contact was not a movie, it was the Mini Series from Steven Spielberg named "Taken" where she talking around the story in the Background and on some episodes she is present in person. After Taken I bought me "Man on Fire" and I will never forgot how I cry at the end (what a Plot)... And the director Tony Scott doing an fantastic work in that movie with the selection of the caracters and how he filmed the movie.
Than "War of the World's" starting in the Cinema and yep, I watched it because of Fanning ;-) The only scene who I didn't like is, who Tom Cruise Kill a crazy Man in front of his daughter (Dakota) who needs to close her eyes and sing. This was unnecessary for the movie.
I'm Sam was a wonderfull heartwarming movie for me. It's awsome how the little Dakota play in that movie and to see, how much love a little child can have inside of the heart.
At least... Hound Dog... For me it's a "Fan Video" around Elvis and what Girls where be ready to do. It's a Movie about a Teen-Life. If I see a Movie like "Lolita", there is much more happen as in Hound Dog. Ok... Now I will collect some punches from others :-)

But if you have trouble with that Movies with Dakota, you also will be go in trouble with "The Secret Life of Bees". Just read the plot...
"Lily Owens lives on a peach orchard in South Carolina in 1964. Her father, T. Ray, is widowed, abusive, and often angry towards his daughter Lily. On Lily's fourteenth birthday, as the harvest is beginning, societal and personal unrest consumes her life, and a string of events, a mix of mystical, terrifying, and unjust, pushes her to run away to find a better life."
[Image]
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Night457 »   1 likes

Thank you lildrm for the 1080p Uloz link. Please note that one is a Turkish dub! Anyone who wants the original English but this superior video quality might want to consider doing a remux ... or keep looking.
Nasuada wrote:I wonder that you so "traumatized" around Dakota Fanning Movies. ...

At least... Hound Dog... For me it's a "Fan Video" around Elvis and what Girls where be ready to do. It's a Movie about a Teen-Life. If I see a Movie like "Lolita", there is much more happen as in Hound Dog. Ok... Now I will collect some punches from others :-)
I probably was overstating my "trauma" ... I just have not seen that many Dakota movies, period, but not because I was avoiding her. What little I have seen, SHE has been excellent. I had forgotten about "Man on Fire". Very good movie, though I did not see it until just a year or so ago! It fits well into a genre of film I am compulsively addicted to: "Violent, emotionally damaged and disillusioned man finds redemption by rescuing a young girl." But I won't go on about that or this post will never end.

"Hounddog" I felt had some flaws but was generally well done, and not deserving of the hatred it apparently got, with some people calling the director a morally abominable monster. Nonsense. She discreetly and artistically tackled a difficult but perfectly legitimate film subject, and took care of her young lead actress while doing so. But people should know what they are in for if they watch it.

Since you want to "collect some punches", I will try to be gentle.

(1) Lewellen was ready against her better judgement to dance undressed for an Elvis ticket. She was not ready to be raped, and the fuckhead did not even give her the ticket!

(2) Dakota was 12 when filming. Her character was also 12, so technically pre-teen and not teen. But I am nitpicking here.

(3) Lolita was not subjected to violence as Lewellen was. She was seduced by a creepy old degenerate -- two of them in fact, both Humbert and Quilty -- but she seemed fairly willing. In fairness, the story is from the viewpoint of the creepy old degenerate, and in the novel at least it seemed clear to me that he was deliberately deluding himself despite his protestations to the contrary. The male directors of both versions seemed to be making fantasy films for middle-aged men. (So I am in their target audience, admittedly.) Perhaps they OUGHT to be more disturbing, but the films as presented were pretty sanitized.

(4) Whether or not the viewer is traumatized, Lewellen clearly was. She was raped, it was a painful experience for her and left her spiritually broken. The rest of the movie was about her healing process. This affected me deeply. It was certainly not one of those movies where I could say, "That was a fun movie! I could watch this all the time!" It took me some years before I could watch it again, and thought Dakota gave a natural and empathetic performance.

I did read the plot of "Secret Life of Bees", so I did think "Uh oh, another roughie." But I think I can handle it.

Thank you Nasuada for sharing your memories of Dakota films! It is this kind of personal discussion that I find especially interesting. I did not "punch" you too hard, did I?
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Night457 »   1 likes

emuler wrote:
Quickone wrote:What are the differences between Directors Cut & Standard.. (I have both) was just wondering..
We still don't have an answer for this.
Back 20 years ago, I could watch a theatrical cut and within a week watch a new-to-me extended cut and easily identify the additional footage. How well could I do now?

Ummm ... my brain don't work so good no more. :P I noticed a good portion of the new scenes, but not all, and some bits I thought were new were not. I had more success comparing subtitle files for the two versions. When I tried watching them together, juggling the computer with the TV and pausing as needed did not work so well. If I had two computers or could use two media players simultaneously on one large monitor, this would be much easier. However, I do believe I managed to identify the bulk of the 242 seconds of additional footage. Yes, I realize what I list does not quite add up to 242, but it is close, darnit!

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEATRICAL AND EXTENDED DIRECTOR'S CUTS!!!
Spoiler:

Approximate timecodes are given for location of additional footage in the Director's Cut.
Action and notes are in brackets [ ]
Dialog is identified with timecode and character's NAMES.

00:03:49,983 - 00:04:37,111
+ 10 seconds
[LILY prepares breakfast for her father T. RAY and mentions silver charm bracelets.]
00:04:29,837 --> 00:04:33,432
LILY: Think I'm the only girl in junior high doesn't have one.

00:04:58,666 --> 00:05:02,193
[In response to T. RAY asking, "You wanna know about your mama?"]
LILY: - Yeah.

00:12:01,551 --> 00:12:10,927
+ 2 seconds
[End of scene of ROSALEEN giving LILY a cake,
beginning of ROSALEEN and LILY walking.]

00:12:36,887 - 00:12:51,535
+ 13.3 seconds
[LILY telling ROSALEEN more of her story]
00:12:39,256 --> 00:12:51,425
LILY: So The Supremes, they're heading down Highway 4...
because they're going to Charleston for a real big concert.
But suddenly, their back tire blows up...
and they go skiddin' across the road and into a ditch.
So then two are saying that Diana's burnin' the peach cobbler.

00:13:49,092 - 00:14:32,202
+ 19 seconds
[Extended scene of FRANK POSEY and his buddies beating ROSALEEN.
Some more violence, POSEY demands "Apologize!" three times instead of two, more crowd reaction, POSEY stops because of the crowd watching, then LILY goes to ROSALEEN.]
00:13:57,701 --> 00:14:00,329
FRANK POSEY: Apologize!
00:14:11,982 --> 00:14:13,745
POSEY'S SON: Daddy!
00:14:24,661 --> 00:14:27,027
LILY: Rosaleen. Rosaleen.

00:15:00,997 - 00:15:18,014
+ 4 seconds
[LILY and T. RAY drive away from the scene.]

00:42:14,129 - 00:42:50,532
+ 5.1 seconds
[extended montage of life on the bee farm.]

00:43:21,729 - 00:43:40,348
+ 4 seconds
[extended scene of ZACH and LILY with the honey.]

+ 4 seconds
[additional dialog of AUGUST telling the story of Black Mary]
00:47:36,291 --> 00:47:40,284
AUGUST: Obadiah knelt down on the wet sand before her...

00:48:00,348 - 00:48:04,652
-1 second ?

00:51:27,855 - 00:52:03,509
+ 4.5 seconds
[Extended AUGUST - LILY conversation after LILY awakes from her faint.]
00:51:32,293 --> 00:51:35,751
AUGUST: Heat'll make a person do strange things.

00:53:45,235 - 00:54:08,792
+ 17.6 seconds
[NEIL and ZACH shooting hoops, with the women almost-watching.]
00:53:49,239 --> 00:53:52,970
NEIL: June Bug! June, I know you hear me.
If I make this shot, you'll give me your hand? Watch this.
[NEIL fails the shot.]
NEIL to ZACH: What you laughin' at?

00:54:08,792 - 00:54:12,128
- .6 second ?

00:55:24,134 - 00:55:40,717
- 2.5 seconds ?

00:56:47,233 - 00:56:50,086
+ 1 second
[LILY checks out ZACH'S behind as he unloads honey,
but scene omits close-up of AUGUST cutting ROSALEEN'S stitches.]

00:56:52,088 - 00:56:56,359
+ 1 second ?

01:02:53,186 - 01:03:12,372
+ 6 seconds
[Extended scene - LILY reacts to finding out that MAY knew her mother.]

01:03:12,372 - 01:03:42,936
+ 12 seconds
[ZACH playfully steals a plate of goodies from MAY.]
01:03:34,361 --> 01:03:37,262
MAY: Give it back!

01:05:12,826 - 01:05:39,986
+ 9.5 seconds
[ZACH drives through town with LILY, and they see white men with baseball bats outside the movie theater.]

01:05:50,430 - 01:05:54,834
+ 1.2 seconds ?

01:05:54,834 - 01:07:10,910
+ 74.8 seconds
[Heavily extended scene. Lawyer MR. FORREST takes ZACH upstairs.
LILY looks at pictures on the wall, including Attorney General Robert Kennedy.
LILY uses the phone to call her father, but hangs up without speaking to him.]
01:05:54,834 --> 01:05:57,667
SECRETARY: I have an appointment with the dentist.
MR. FORREST: Okay.
ZACH: What you working on?
MR. FORREST: Run-of-the-mill stuff. Hey, I got somethin' for you. Wanna head up to the office?
Are you, uh, lookin' forward to school gettin' started up?
ZACH: Yes, sir. And football season...
MR. FORREST: Oh, yeah. We're lookin' forward to that.
OPERATOR: Hello. Operator.
LILY: I'd like to make a call to Sylvan 7-1710.
OPERATOR: Hold while I connect your call, please.
T. RAY: Hello? Hello!

01:25:16,633 - 01:25:39,390
+ 19 seconds
[Additional dialog of AUGUST telling LILY about her mother.]
LILY: How did my mother get down here?
AUGUST: She had an old friend from high school, moved to Sylvan.
Told her there were jobs, and men back from the war. So she moved.
I think it was 'cause of me though. I just think she wanted me nearby.

+ 2.5 seconds
01:26:22,132 --> 01:26:24,396
LILY: But she married him?

01:30:23,403 - 01:30:59,576
+ 33.7 seconds
[New scene! ROSALEEN talks to LILY after LILY'S enraged honey-jar smashing.]
ROSALEEN: Lily. ... What in Mary's name happened here? Answer me.
LILY: T. Ray was right about my mother. She left me.
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by ghost »   0 likes

Looks like a lot of work (and time), Night457 :o

Thanks. Now we have an answer ;)
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by Night457 »   0 likes

I enjoyed it enough to watch it twice in two days. The comparisons took up the rest of my Saturday, with time left over for taking a walk, antagonizing people on another Internet forum (it's OK, they are all trolls) and watching an episode of Quantum Leap.

The detailed work down to one second of footage positively identified on DVD comparison sites, now that would be some crazy work. Can't do that.
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Re: [REL] The Secret Life of Bees (2008)

Post by emuler »   1 likes

Awesome! I'd have been happy with a recommendation that the extended version is worth the trouble. This is above and beyond. Thanks again, Night457.
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