Beowulf (2007) - A Film Review

So, I was looking through the TV listings last week and decided that, despite NaNoWriMo, I deserved some downtime. So I took a look at what films were on, and selected the 2007 incarnation of Beowulf.


The Movie Poster for 'Beowulf'

Now I've always been a fan of the epics: The Lord of the Rings and such. So I thought, hey, why not.

I watched it, and was fairly impressed.

The story revolves around the great hero Beowulf (surprise!), who has sailed to Denmark to help defeat the monster Grendel, who plagues the mead halls of the king. Needless to say, there's some mindless slaughter and then an epic battle in which Beowulf defeats the demon. However, that leaves someone very unhappy. That someone being Grendel's mother.

So Grendel's mother draws Beowulf into her caves, seduces him and then curses him in a rather subtle way. The story progresses from there, leading up to a lovely big one-on-one fight to round it all off.

When the thing came on, I was surprised to see that it was an animation, mostly because of the rating of a 12A (or a PG13). However, I quickly realised that it was a smart move on the part of the producers, as it allowed them to do things that they never could have dreamt of if it were made using real people instead of animated avatars. For example, Grendel. He's a real piece of work. If that  were to be made into a special effects model for use with actors, then some very elaborate stunts would have to be devised and a large percent of the budget spent on green-screening Grendel into the mead halls.

Speaking of which, let's talk of Grendel. To put it frankly, he's a masterpiece of animation. Possibly the ugliest excuse for a humanoid that I've ever seen on screen, it's difficult to imagine even his own mother loving that face. The oversized head, the offset jaw, the rheumy eyes and the raw, disfigured flesh make him truly fearsome. And his scream! What a horrible sound. Even the way he moves is unnaturally ugly.

So far, we've got our epic hero, armed with sheer strength, a sharp sword and a tendency to boast and lie for his own glory, and a horrible monster.

Then comes the nudity. There's too much of it. Personally, I think it takes away from a movie instead of adds to it. Yes, I agree that that sort of thing is part of life, but do film producers really think that emphasizing it and focusing on it at times is a way to increase the star ratings? I don't. So, no ten for this one.

We're past that now. Themes.

As far as themes go, it's pretty basic. It follows the textbook formula for writing/filming/telling an epic story: Lots of violence, a terrible curse and/or monster, a tad of love, some rather predictable suspense and a team of amorous and loyal warriors. So, basically we've got war, heroics, love and not a lot else. the producers get away with adding what appears to be just a small amount of romance, but when thought about amounts to something with deep roots. We also get a good long look at the consequences of Beowulf's actions, as the movie is split into two parts: Young Beowulf, conquering Grendel, and older Beowulf, facing up to what he's done. I find that the split between the two halves was a good idea, adding entertainment value and giving the necessary time for certain things to develop.

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So, on to ratings. I quite liked this film. It wasn't as epic as The Lord of the Rings, but what can beat that anyway? Still, it maintained a medieval feel throughout and managed to remain epic in almost every scene. A ten for that part.

Monsters were awesome. Grendel was, as aforementioned, more than a little horrific. His mother was... interesting. Then the dragon at the end was just amazing. Ten out of ten for monsters.

Then we get to the violence. There's a copious amount of digitalised globules of bodily fluids flying about the place, particularly when Grendel's still kicking about. This lapses in the middle, and then we get another dose of the yucky stuff at the end. If you can't stand cartoon violence resulting in severed limbs and stuff like that, don't watch it. There's a gratuitous amount of violence, but what can you expect from a 12A film starring a well-known hero who wields a sort and is famed for his killings of dislikeable creatures?

So, all things considered, I'll give it a five. There's a little too much violence and nudity involved, but it's a cartoon sort of production. Yet the animated style and the obviously stylised effects make for a good film. It's certainly the correct medium to go about doing this. Plus, we have some good strong characters with definite likeables and dislikeables among them. You get me? If you don't, comment.

On top of it all, it maintains an epic air without getting too predictable or boring. I'm not sure what fans of the original Beowulf legends would say though. I haven't read the ballads of Beowulf.

So that's me giving it a five. End of.

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I include, for your enjoyment and gratification, the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000Y86NS6/ref=s9_simh_gw_p74_d0_g74_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1EKD7RBYWFK0TZYMVQ0C&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Until the next time I see a film worth reviewing, I tell you goodbye.