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“Alexander,” “Troy,” “300” – now the Anglo-Saxon poem “Beowulf” can be added to the list of ancient, epic tales turned into movies in recent years.
“Beowulf,” however, differs from the others as it is an animated film using the technique of motion capture. Director Robert Zemeckis, using the same motion capture method he used in “The Polar Express,” delivers a visually captivating action film, albeit loosely based on the story of Beowulf.
For those not familiar with the story, here’s a quick recap. King Hrothgar of the Danes (Anthony Hopkins) has a problem. Grendel (Crispin Glover), a disfigured monster, attacks and kills the people of Hrothgar’s kingdom whenever there is a celebration and he can not be stopped by Hrothgar or his warriors. Lucky for Hrothgar, a heroic Geat, Beowulf (Ray Winstone) sails into town and kills Grendel and confronts Grendel’s mother (Angelina Jolie).
This is where much of the similarity to the original story ends. However, what Zemeckis and company add to the film in terms of plot serve the movie well.
Instead of focusing on a perfect hero who stands for truth, justice and honor, what the audience gets is a hero who is fallible and succumbs to the temptations of lust and power adding depth to the character of Beowulf.
The visual effects in “Beowulf,” although spotty at times, are overall pretty good. The characters voiced by Hopkins and Jolie are physically similar to their real-life counterparts.
At some points, the animation and movement of the characters looks awkward. This is most obvious when seeing Robin Wright Penn’s character, Queen Wealthow, who at times looks as if she is one of the ogres from “Shrek.”
“Beowulf” is being released using Real D and 3-D effects. If at all possible, try to see the movie this way at an IMAX or theater sufficiently equipped to show it in 3-D.
The developers try to impress the audience with some pretty cool looking 3-D effects in the first minutes, which are a little distracting at first but are toned down as the movie goes on, giving the audience a chance to focus on the story.
The dialogue of “Beowulf” is a hodgepodge of accents and dialects from the actors. No need to worry about confusing dialogue or trying to understand old Anglo-Saxon words no one uses anymore, which are found in the poem.
“Beowulf” combines a solid story with some pretty cool effects making it a movie definitely worth seeing on the big screen.
David McNeely can be reached at [email protected].
