20,000 Species of Bees

Although we easily accept the existence of more than 20,000 species of bees, human diversity strikes many as difficult to embrace. 8-year-old Lucía, whom most of her relatives still address by the official name Aitor against her will, learns this the hard way. During her vacation spent in a Basque village, the heroine confronts extremely different attitudes: from the apparent dislike of her conservative grandmother to the inaction of her confused mother. Tenaciously defending her own identity, Lucía gains a surprising ally – the compassionate aunt taking care of the bees and living in harmony with nature. Through the harmonious relationship of these two heroines, 20,000 Species of Bees is a film that brings solace although not without bitterness. Perhaps it's this gentle tone, which by no means deprives the story of clarity, but allows it to avoid melodramatic clichés that made Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren's debut one of the revelations of this year's Berlinale.

Piotr Czerkawski