Beowulf

Starring: Ray Winstone, Robin Wright Penn, Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Angelina Jolie, Crispin Glover, Brendan Gleeson, Alison Lohman
Directed by: Robert Zemeckis
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama
2007

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Beowulf (Ray Winstone) comes to the aid of King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins) to fight the monster Grendel (Crispin Glover). However, he soon learns that Grendel's mother (Angelina Jolie) is far more dangerous than her son.

Review:

Tim: I am not a huge fan of the whole realistic animation thing. When I thought about Beowulf, I couldn't get very excited. If the movie had been live-action, I would have been much more interested. However, there is much more to the amazing computer animation than first appears. For example, there are several scenes that could not have been done nearly as well if the movie had been live action. In short, I was sold on this approach to the film.

Ray Winstone was a somewhat unlikely choice for Beowulf, but he does a tremendous job. He is exactly the hero we imagine, in every way. Anthony Hopkins does a very good job as well. Robin Wright Penn is slightly less good. She's not terrible, but she gets the job done. I also loved seeing John Malkovich and Brendan Gleeson in their roles. The cast was just tremendous. Crispin Glover was a brilliant choice to play Grendel. Angelina Jolie was slightly unconventional in her casting as Grendel's mother. Besides looking a bit odd, she's fairly good. The whole cast was surprisingly strong.

The film had some incredible action scenes. The fights between Beowulf and various monsters are all quite good. The computer animation really works wonders here- some of these scenes are jaw-dropping.

Beowulf is a surprisingly well made movie from director Robert Zemeckis. It brings the classic ancient epic poem to life. The characters all look frightingly realistic, and the monsters are unbelievably scary. The film is loaded with suspense, and it will not be easy to forget.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: 300, Alexander, Gladiator