Sweet the Sting
Directed by Andrew Patterson
Starring Matthew McConaughey, Angelina LookingGlass, Kurt Russell
Released August 14th, 2026
Rated R
Beloved local figure Amziah King (Matthew McConaughey) spends his days tending to his beehives and his nights playing music with his friends. Everyone likes Amziah. He’s a scruffy pillar of the community. He has been able to turn his bees’ hard work making honey into good money for himself and the locals he employs at his operation. Years ago, Amziah and his late wife fostered children for a short time. He is very happy to discover that one of these now grown kids, Kateri (Angelina LookingGlass), is back in town and looking to reconnect with him. Amziah happily takes Kateri to his beekeeping operation, introduces her to his friends, and brings her back to the house they used to share to shower her with music, company, and food. It’s a shock to all when Amziah’s hives are stolen. Kateri puts it upon herself to figure out who took the moneymaking insects, and why.
Written (under the pseudonym James Montague) and directed by Andrew Patterson, The Rivals of Amziah King cannot be classified as a musical, but it does feature many sequences of characters playing music. I am not a fan of the rustic stomp-clap-hey music that the characters love so much, but it’s not hard to take delight in their mastery of the mandolin, banjo, and sweet folksy harmonizing. Patterson must have listened to the criticism that called his debut feature The Vast of Night heavy on mood and light on characters, because The Rivals of Amziah King is all about its characters. Eschewing the David Fincher chill of The Vast of Night, The Rivals of Amziah King is bathed in sunlight and song as we follow the exploits of these Oklahoma yokels. The characters sing. They play music. They dispense folky wisdom while singing and playing music. Some drive pickup trucks, some work at diners or fast food joints, some keep bees.
McConaughey has successfully played stoners, lawyers, heroes, surfers, romantic leads, and villains, all with his signature southern drawl. He’s just fantastic as Amziah King. It’s one of those performances that you can’t imagine anyone else doing any better. McConaughey may be the title character, but the movie belongs to Angelina LookingGlass. This is her first feature film, and it’s a memorable debut performance. LookingGlass gives Kateri a steely resolve that contrasts nicely with her megawatt smile. Once she sets her mind to something, you have no doubt she’s going to see it through. The supporting cast is also strong, notably Tony Revolori as banjo enthusiast Colmar and Cole Sprouse as the unfortunately named Oat. Scott Shepherd plays Jimmy, a comic relief character that is basically a live action Boomhauer from King of the Hill, and Kurt Russell pops in just to remind everyone that he is a walking ball of charisma.
I don’t think I’ve seen another film quite like this. The closest I can get to comparing it to something else would be to consider it a Southern fried variation of a Wes Anderson movie. Across his filmography, Anderson introduces strange characters, displays their oddities and tics, and lets his stories unfold in surprising ways. Patterson’s movie does all of these things, though it does not ape Anderson’s visual style, instead going for a warm naturalist look courtesy of cinematographer Miguel I. Littin-Menz. The Rivals of Amziah King has a few scenes showcasing the calm buzzing of a cluster of beehives, recalling the serenity of similar scenes in Naoh Hawley’s underrated Lucy in the Sky. LookingGlass was reportedly stung seven separate times during filming. Since McConaughey is allergic to bees, his scenes among the hives were postponed in the shooting schedule until the last day of filming. The fact that no CGI was used in place of real insects makes the shots of McConaughey and LookingGlass slowly becoming covered with thousands of bees all the more impressive.
I will take umbrage with one line of dialogue in the film. When Amziah and his crew are called to a school to rehome a swarm, Amziah says bees only swarm when they’re looking for a fight. This could not be further from the truth. Swarming bees are notably docile, and I do not see how someone writing a screenplay about a beekeeper would make said beekeeper say something so clearly false. The entire elementary school sequence is played for laughs and doesn’t earn very many. The film would not suffer if this sequence was taken out entirely. Still, it’s a credit to Patrick J. Smith’s skillful editing that this 130 minute movie rarely drags. You don’t mind spending time with these characters. You get wrapped up in their stories and want to see how it all shakes out. The film’s ending is quite surprising and I could see it leaving some viewers unsatisfied. Some viewers, but not me.