Beowulf
March 19th 2008 10:21
Beowulf
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Released in Australia:
Star rating: ***1/2
Now that Angelina Jolie plays the monster Grendel’s mother and seduces Ray Winstone as Beowulf, most people will become familiar with the 6th century Norse saga through Robert Zemeckis’ film Beowulf.
If you have the choice to see Beowulf in 3-D or 2-D, choose 3-D because you get those fun little paper glasses and the monsters jump into the audience. I had no choice, but even in 2-D the effects are impressive and frightening. Filmed in ‘performance-capture technique’, like Zemeckis’ The Polar Express, it allows live actors’ performances to be captured and recreated into digitally enhanced characters on screen.
Some actors are recognizable like John Malkovich, Angelina Jolie and Anthony Hopkins but others have been given a complete makeover.
The story is set in Scandinavia where a king (Hopkins) and his people are being terrorized by an unfathomably ugly demon, Grendel. Grendel’s mother (Jolie) is a tempting seductress whom no man can resist. The themes are plenty here: the strength of kinship, morality, honour, revenge.
Yet in all of the film’s grandeur and gore, there is plenty of room for campness. Why Beowulf decides to get naked to fight Grendel remains a mystery. Think of the practicalities…Blood, guts and bile drench the screen, yet great care is taken not to show Beowulf’s groin. It’s comical to see this muscular, plastic looking hero fight a demon in the buff.
Grendel is the only one who speaks Danish in the film, making us believe that Hollywood believes demons are Danish and heroes are plastic.
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Released in Australia:
Star rating: ***1/2
Now that Angelina Jolie plays the monster Grendel’s mother and seduces Ray Winstone as Beowulf, most people will become familiar with the 6th century Norse saga through Robert Zemeckis’ film Beowulf.
If you have the choice to see Beowulf in 3-D or 2-D, choose 3-D because you get those fun little paper glasses and the monsters jump into the audience. I had no choice, but even in 2-D the effects are impressive and frightening. Filmed in ‘performance-capture technique’, like Zemeckis’ The Polar Express, it allows live actors’ performances to be captured and recreated into digitally enhanced characters on screen.
The story is set in Scandinavia where a king (Hopkins) and his people are being terrorized by an unfathomably ugly demon, Grendel. Grendel’s mother (Jolie) is a tempting seductress whom no man can resist. The themes are plenty here: the strength of kinship, morality, honour, revenge.
Yet in all of the film’s grandeur and gore, there is plenty of room for campness. Why Beowulf decides to get naked to fight Grendel remains a mystery. Think of the practicalities…Blood, guts and bile drench the screen, yet great care is taken not to show Beowulf’s groin. It’s comical to see this muscular, plastic looking hero fight a demon in the buff.
Grendel is the only one who speaks Danish in the film, making us believe that Hollywood believes demons are Danish and heroes are plastic.
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Comment by Harry
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I don't remember Grendel speaking Danish!
I they tried to justify the nude fighting in terms of the actual poem, which describes Beowulf taking off his kit before the fight.
Comment by Anonymous
It does just seem so impractical to fight in the nuddy! Thanks for the feedback.