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A Beautiful Balancing Act: The Exuberant Tones, Joys, and Energy of The Rivals of Amziah King

The Rivals of Amziah King is something like a beehive. Within it there is an abundance of sweetness produced by an intensity of driven, like-minded community fellowship, a heaviness of necessity for the work and the vitality of what it means, and a sense of awe with the process and structure so critical to that taste that is yearned for. But be careful, because it also stings and stings hard when disturbed.
The compulsively eclectic sophomore feature from director Andrew Patterson I find myself at a bit of a loss to characterize with its equal elements of western noir, crime drama, coming-of-age film, and slice-of-life vibes movie -arguably also a low-key rural musical. It runs in and out of each of these qualifiers yet manages to largely stay cohesive somehow, its texture as multifarious yet fitting as a honeycomb. Exuberant in its style and by turns endearing, eccentric, and dramatically mystifying in its story, it is one of the more inspired movie concepts we’ve seen all year and concerning a subject one would think far removed from the kinds of excitement it evokes.
It is a film about the art and beauty of beekeeping and simultaneously the cutthroat corruption of the honey industry. Matthew McConaughey stars as the title character, a beekeeper and musician in rural Oklahoma, a relentlessly friendly sage and expert at his work. He is supported by his tight-knit community even as his business struggles behind the scenes. In the wake of an accident involving one of his machines while aiding an investigation into stolen honey, Amziah crosses paths with his former foster daughter Kateri (Angelina LookingGlass), whom he reconnects with, inducting her into his circles and hiring her on as his assistant, a role she takes on with an unsuspecting passion. The serene oasis of their life and work is starkly interrupted however by the machinations of more powerful beekeepers, and Kateri is forced to take on heavy new responsibilities in response and retaliation.
Patterson colours the movie, especially through its lengthy first act, in a veneer of vivid warmth and energy, and for material that might seem dull and mechanical, invests a spirit and momentum that keeps his subjects genuinely intoxicating. There is a rhythm to the movie, driven in large part by a cacophony of soulful bluegrass music that permeates the film's soundtrack, in perfect sync with its creative editing and compositional pacing, that begins with the most thrilling opening credits sequence of the year and only ceases where the more dramatic and darker material of the film's second half necessitates. Yet the tone set by this rhythm makes those very areas of its absence ring all the more raw and disturbing. Patterson is willing to turn his own aesthetic tenor against his audience, assured it can cushion the film’s harsher avenues.
It is rather endearing and emotionally stirring. Amziah and Kateri’s relationship is beautifully warm, even as they bristle in little degrees. Amziah putting her on the spot to sing one night while his friends play their music is one such example. And yet it is still a scene of tremendous affection and joy. McConaughey gives his best performance in some time here, in that while Amziah is not so dissimilar from his usual brand of character, the thoughtful way the script uses him is very beneficial to a grounded and earnest portrait. He commands respect very naturally, his enlightened attitude around beekeeping and honey production is somewhere between authentic and cliché. His heart comes off as sincere, especially towards Kateri whom he clearly never stopped thinking of as a daughter. But it is LookingGlass who ultimately carries the movie -an astounding debut. She demonstrates a surprising range in attitude, conviction, and power, playing the wide-eyed, subtly sentimental and adorably curious protege as well as a more driven, methodical, and even ruthless personality when it comes to her dealing with the crimes waged against her and Amziah’s business. There comes a point where you are not sure what direction she'll take a beat of drama or mystery, and yet she is invitingly naturalistic through all of it -which accounts for some great shock value. A captivating, multi-faceted performance so unusual to see from an actress so young.
The shifting moods of the film call to mind the narrative style and energy of the Coen Brothers, though perhaps a touch more pronounced in each direction. Certainly, there is some Coen-esque humour in there (and the more boisterous parts of the score do echo the likes of Raising Arizona and O Brother Where Art Thou), but it feels like a mere coating over observations that are as personal to Patterson as the ones in those movies are to the Coens. The sequence where Amziah takes Kateri on a tour of a potluck for instance, each dish associated with an idiosyncratic detail of the person who brought it. Or when the pair of them go to a school to dispose of a bee infestation with kids clustered outside in groups based on allergies -while the allergic bus driver himself suffers a bee sting. And the same notion applies to the supporting characters who are mix of humble amiability -such as Amziah’s band-mates and his Brazilian visitors- and offbeat eccentrics, such as Jake Horowitz's helpful ex-con Remmick and his friend Colmar (Tony Revolori).
Beauty and harshness exist in tandem in this film and they can be jarring contrasts, but there is something just a little thrilling in the way Patterson manipulates his audience's sentiments. And yet for as stark as they might seem, particularly as a scale of crime escalates, that beauty is never negated. The value of community that Amziah subtly wields and Kateri is blessed with still radiates tenderness, whatever it may be melded to. And there is a kind of awesome magic to the bees that Patterson does well to emphasize. Both come together perhaps best in a second act river rafting subplot right out of Huckleberry Finn that is imbued with a worthy degree of wonder, heartfelt comradery, and emotional catharsis.
The titular Rivals, chief of whom is an old cowboy baron played by Kurt Russell, have none of the reverence that Amziah and later Kateri do for their bees. it's only natural that they would get stung (curiously, Kateri comments on how she has never once been stung by a bee no matter how close with them she is). The beehive metaphor is ultimately a rather blunt one (more curious are the film's delicate mirrors to The Godfather), but Patterson earns it. The Rivals of Amziah King is not at all what it appears to be. It is more visceral and morally dubious yes, but it is just as much more wholesome and joyful -and that is what lasts about it. A deeply intriguing, singular movie, a warm spoonful of honey.

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