Beowulf!!!!!

[phil]

I saw it in 3D a couple of nights ago. I liked it. Technically it's a very impressive film. I have the suspicion that it should only be seen in 3D to get the full effect. I wonder what will happen when it gets released on DVD.

My local theatre charged $2.00 more to see it in 3D. I think that's a standard
practice now for what they consider "special features".

[English Paul]

I'm going to see it at the local IMAX next week. I'll reserve judgement until I see it but on a 40ft high screen just about anything is going to be good.

[johnmiic]

English prof. around the world are going to be pulling hair out of their heads because the film differs from the old poem signifigantly in a few places. They'll probably blame Hollywood but I suspect Gaiman made changes either based on input from Zemeckis or thought it better to tie things up more neatly.

I thought it was pretty good but sometimes I felt the digitizing of the actors faces held back their preformances. Anjelina Jolie's face seemed not to be digitized so much, ( tho her nekkid body seemed to have been fattened up a bit-no complaints there). Not sure if Grendel should look like he did tho. He seemed to be pretty fragile-looking for a threatening monster.

[Vortigern99]

I dunno, I wouldn't call Grendel 'fragile' exactly, he just looked... well, undead. Lest we forget, he is a magical creature, so his outward appearance might not necessarily match his physical abilities. As to the script changes, I understand Gaiman and Avery wrote the script years ago, before Zemeckis came on as director, but of course it's certainly possible that further revisions were made under Bob's guidance. All the changes seem thoroughly 21st-century to me, a sort of meta-text reading of Beowulf, in which his glorious veneer of super-heroism -- taken for granted by readers and listeners for 1300 years -- is stripped away to reveal a real, fallible human being underneath. Good stuff.

[Sideshow Spock]

Grendel is a perfect example of what can happen if you let an ear infection go too long w/out proper treatment..

[johnmiic]

WARNING: SPOILERS!!!!!

[QUOTE=Vortigern99;64323]I dunno, I wouldn't call Grendel 'fragile' exactly, he just looked... well, undead. Lest we forget, he is a magical creature, so his outward appearance might not necessarily match his physical abilities. As to the script changes, I understand Gaiman and Avery wrote the script years ago, before Zemeckis came on as director, but of course it's certainly possible that further revisions were made under Bob's guidance. [QUOTE]

Perhaps so. This unskinned Grendel while large and scary just seemed very vunerable to me looking that way. Usually depictions of Grendel are of a large humanoid warrior. This guy reminds me of the mutant look from Beneath The Planet of the Apes.

The changes I find most striking:

SPOILERS!!!!!!!

Grendel's Mother is not killed by Beowulf but he makes love to her. When you cast Angelina Jolie as Grendel's mother I guess that direction is hard to resist.

Beowulf is given the throne by the King after allegedly defeating Grendel's mother. ( He does not travel to his far off kingdom).

Her son, Beowulf's son, is the Dragon that attacks the lands Beowulf rules.
( I don't think there was a family connection in the poem).

These changes are very modern and do seem to be an attempt to keep the story in one place geographically. There is a great trend in Hollywood to try and tie up loose ends neatly. For example: Batman, 1989, Jack Napier, ( the one day to become Joker), kills Bruce Wayne's parents creating The Batman who in trying to apprehend Napier helps him along in becoming the Joker.

I have not read various, different, translation of the poem however. Are there translations that differ in detail from one to another?

Histrionic Spock, I did keep getting this flash of Monty Python, thinking if Grendel's mother had hired someone to install a sound barrier outside her home the whole incident of the noisy neighbors would not have happened.

[Vortigern99]

I've made a few comments and addenda to johnmiic's list of changes between poem and film:

WARNING: SPOILERS!!!!!

The changes I find most striking:

SPOILERS!!!!!!!

Grendel's Mother is not killed by Beowulf but he makes love to her. When you cast Angelina Jolie as Grendel's mother I guess that direction is hard to resist.

Not only does she seduce Beowulf, but many years ago she has also seduced Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins), which act has produced Grendel in the first place. My wife hit upon the genius explanation that Grendel's hideous 'undead' appearance is a result of Hrothgar failing to properly slay the Dragon that he slew as a young man, not going so far as Beowulf does to actually hack off his own arm in order to reach in to the Dragon's chest and yank out its heart. In other words, the Dragon Hrothgar defeated in his youth was his own son, Grendel; failing to properly kill it in its first incarnation has resulted in its current ghoul-man aspect.

Beowulf is given the throne by the King after allegedly defeating Grendel's mother. ( He does not travel to his far off kingdom).

... of Geatland.

Her son, Beowulf's son, is the Dragon that attacks the lands Beowulf rules.
( I don't think there was a family connection in the poem).

That's correct. Many different translations exist, but there is none that describes this family connection. This subplot, as you rightly guess, has been introduced by the screenwriters as a contemporary, meta-text rendition that seeks to link all the elements of the plot and tie them up neatly at the end.

Other changes from poem to film include:

The Golden Horn is not a feature in the poem. In Geatland, one of Beowulf's slaves discovers, not the Horn, but a piece of treasure from the Dragon's horde, which pilferage awakens the evil serpent.

The double love triangle, first between Wealtheow (Robin Wright-Penn), Hrothgar and Beowulf, then after Hrothgar's death, between Beowulf, Wealtheow and the servant-girl who loves Beowulf.

There may be others, but they elude me at the moment.

[Sideshow Spock]

For those that missed it in theaters, Beowulf comes out on DVD this week. It's the standard version, not the 3D. Given that theaters needed to have special digital 3D projection equipment to show the 3D version, I guess a digital 3D transfer to DVD just isn't possible or feasible or cost-effective. Or whatever.

Still worth checking out tho..

[English Paul]

I went to see it about 2 months ago in 3D. The 3D was great and that was about the only good thing about it. I just found it a little slow. Maybe I went in without knowing too much about it. For me it was OK but that's about all. The close ups of Grendel were near stomach churning The animation was good and the actors chosen to voice the characters were spot on.

Sadly I won't be rushing to see it again.

[BlackKnight]

I just saw this.
Ok I liked it. I like the Animation,.. it's Fantastic just how far in technology with movies that We have come in the last few yrs. Jolie's Body was just so perfect in every way. All I could think was just, "WOW".

But to just sum-up the Movie for me,.. as I interpreted it. "With the Beauty and Power of a Woman, it can Make a Man, just as easy as Break a Man" .. I dunno, I was just hoping for a bit more.

[Vortigern99]

I'm glad people are talking about this again, even to say they were tepid on it. I think it deserves alot more acclaim than it's gotten. It's just such an unusual film that it may years before people begin to realize what an exceptional, challenging and intelligent action-adventure movie it really is.

[Sideshow Spock]

Like I said months ago, I really enjoyed the movie and 3D experience. I'm looking forward to watching it again on the standard DVD to see if it holds up for me.

[Brue]

i finally checked this out of the library and watched it.

it was better than i thought it would be. though not a classic it was enjoyable.


i was hooked in teh action scenes and the visuals and cared about the characters and story. sometimes i'd forget it was all cgi


the only difference from the epic poem (as I remember) after a struggle with grendel's mom - he does defeat her - the sword is lost or destroyed in that battle, the dragon - i think - is not his son.

not really a change i story but maybe left out - he has an irresistable to battle grendel

it has been a long time since i read it and being a tale of oral tradition there are many versions.

[Meule]

I finally saw it a few weeks ago and I must say I was impressed

[toys2cool]

I liked it as well, I have a huge canvas poster in my toy room and every time someone see's it they tell me it's cool but that the film sucked