Beowulf Review
by Homer Yen (homer_yen AT yahoo DOT com)November 21st, 2007
Hail! Mighty ¡°Beowulf"
by Homer Yen
(c) 2007
Wikipedia lists "Beowulf" as an epic poem set
around 500 A.D. It is a story of grand events
and of great people of a heroic past. The
Hollywood version is a boldly re-imagined tale of
the legendary monster-slayer who not only fends
off sea monsters, trolls, and dragons, but also
does it in 3D. Yet, Beowulf (voiced by Ray
Winstone) doesn't come to us as prepackaged
invincibility. He grows into his legendary
status. Similarly, the film also doesn't start
off well. It takes time for it to show its
beauty.
Its biggest oddity is that the film is animated.
You couldn't tell from the advertising posters.
The animation technique is called motion-capture.
A common explanation of this process is that
¡°actors¡¯ movements are recorded electronically,
transformed into imagery, and then inserted into
a computer-generated setting.¡± The technology
has evolved since we last saw this method used in
¡°The Polar Express¡±. It is incredibly lifelike
in nature; however, it has a difficult time
capturing the peoples¡¯ emotional nuances. This
period is a time of courage and despair, glory
and shame. Yet, most of the time, the characters
looked either sleepy or drunk.
The film opens up in a great mead hall erected by
Hrothgar (voiced by Anthony Hopkins) for his
people. The revelry, however, annoys a
horrifically putrid, troll-like beast named
Grendel (voiced/shrilled by Crispin Glover). It
stages a brutal attack on the otherwise peaceful
villagers. Word of this foul beast spreads far
and wide. One day, Beowulf and his soldiers come
to Hrothgar's land. In a very cool European
accent, the Geat leader declares, ¡°I hev come to
kell your munster.¡±
Hrothgar is thrilled. He would gladly give his
kingdom to the hero that rids them of their
nightmare. However, one of Hrothgar's aides is
skeptical. That would be Unferth (John
Malkovich) who deliciously mocks Beowulf¡¯s
supposed achievements in a manner that is soooo
John Malkovich. But the eloquent and
glory-hungry Beowulf will honor his promise,
engage Grendel, and will give the bards something
to sing about. The bards will indeed sing many
songs as the film provides many challenges to
Beowulf's warring supremacy.
Certainly, the Beowulf character is one of the
most colorful you'll see this season. He
possesses the heartiness of King Leonidas, the
boastfulness of a WWE wrestler, and the
extemporaneous speaking skills of a fact-spinning
politician. ¡°If we die, it¡¯ll not be for gold;
it¡¯ll be for glory!¡± he says in a manner that
makes me grateful that I live in today's era of
convenience but makes me wish that we possessed
yesterday¡¯s era of can-do fearlessness.
A unique twist is that the film is available in
some theaters as a 3-D experience. I've seen
both versions (the 2D first), and both are a lot
of fun. Some may argue that 3D is just a
novelty, and only works when things are coming at
you. In this film, that would include arrows,
swords, mead, battle axes, dripping blood, etc¡
And they may be right. But this is a
weekend-fun-movie in every sense of the word.
So, don those 3D specs, and enjoy.
My enthusiasm for ¡°Beowulf¡± doesn't necessarily
stem from its story or from its cool animation or
even from its dramatic arc. Indeed, these three
components are all well-developed. For me, it
was the timing of its release. The fall season
is usually full of somber or serious films all
vying for Oscar's attention. The overcast skies
that come with the change of seasons cause me to
search for something to snap me out of the
settling winter blues. And a new visual
experience is always welcome. It's a fun
experience that goes from weird to engaging to
rousing. And when it was all over, I was ready
to hit a sword against a shield and chant
Beowulf's name. All Hail mighty Beowulf!
Grade: B+
S: 1 out of 3
L: 0 out of 3
V: 3 out of 3
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