Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

Beowulf and Grendel (2005): Dir: Sturla Gunnarsson / Cast: Gerard Butler, Stellan Skarsgard, Sarah Polley, Ingnar Sigurdsson, Tony Curran: Technically well drawn film about conflict. Beowulf is summoned by a struggling King to slay a troll named Grendel. Film opens with the slaying of Grendel's father and the revenge sought. Structure is repetitious with Grendel attacking then Beowulf failing to end the feud. It doesn't end pleasant but its misplaced humour is distracting. Gerard Butler as Beowulf is pretty straight forward. He bests Grendel then he eventually kills Grendel before dealing with the wrath of his demented mother whom he will also kill. Stellan Skarsgard portrays the King who is paying for his past. Sarah Polley is terrific as a witch to whom Beowulf will seek answers from. Ingnar Sigurdsson plays off the vengeful spirit of Grendel. Director Sturla Gunnarsson keeps the tension high as villagers fear to shut their eyes in fear of waking under attack. He previously made a greater film called Such A Long Journey, another film about a lone figure attempting to knock down a wall of sorts. The special effects are not too overwhelming, which allows them to accompany the narrative as oppose to rule it. It delivers on its ancient sets and grotesque creatures without mocking the story. Theme regards hate and its everlasting plunge into death and despair. Score: 6 ½ / 10

Released in 2005, "Beowulf & Grendel" tells the basic story of the epic poem: Beowulf (Gerard Butler), a hero of the Geats (modern-day Sweden), comes to the aid of Hrothgar (Stellan Skarsgård), the king of the Danes (modern-day Denmark), whose great hall is terrorized by the monster Grendel (Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson). In the poem Beowulf fights Grendel with his bare hands and, in the second act, he takes on Grendel's sea hag mother (Elva Ósk Ólafsdóttir) with a magical sword he finds in her lair.The third act of the poem takes place fifty years after these events when Beowulf is king of the Geats wherein he takes on a fire-breathing dragon, which is entirely omitted in the film.The first two acts are, of course, re-imagined for the film. Grendel is no longer an evil monster, but rather a Neanderthalic lug who lives by himself in the wilderness, which the director described as a "Sasquatch," but – don't worry – he looks nothing like a conventional Bigfoot. He looks just as described: A mentally-challenged Neanderthalic lug. The movie wisely adds the character of a seer outcast, Selma, played by Sarah Polley. I've heard people complain about her performance, but I regard her as a highlight.The fact that the movie is called "Beowulf & Grendel" signifies that Grendel is probably going to be a more sympathetic character than in the poem, and he is. The motive for his slaughter of the Danes isn't due to the agonizing sounds of celebration, as in the poem, but rather primal vengeance. Despite Grendel's lack of sophistication there's ethicality to his killings. For instance, he refuses to slay Hrothgar and also refuses, at first, to harm the Geats. The story reveals why. As for Beowulf, he isn't depicted as a one-dimensional; he plays the detective who starts to see that there's more going on than meets the eye.The movie plays like a fairly realistic Viking tale, but the inclusion of the sea hag puts it in the realm of fantasy. What the heck is a "sea hag" anyway? In any event, this is an excellent live-action companion-piece to 2007's animated "Beowulf," which was much more popular at the box office ("Beowulf & Grendel" bombed, but – then again – it was barely released). The percussion-oriented score is great and the Icelandic locations are magnificent. While the plot is simple, there's a lot more going on underneath the surface. For details see Callmomrad's incredibly well-written and erudite review on IMDb. My lone criticism is that you can only make out about half the dialogue due to the heavy accents and muffled deliveries, which wouldn't be a problem if the DVD had a subtitle option, but it doesn't; so you'll have to listen closely.The film runs 103 minutes.GRADE: B+

Beowulf (Gerard Butler) leads his men across the sea to battle the murderous troll Grendel for King Hrothgar (Stellan Skarsgård). However, Grendel is a real person seeking revenge for past grievances. Beowulf is conflicted. He is also enchanted by Selma the witch (Sarah Polley).This is a modern envisioning of a simple folktale of good versus evil. Its style is one of stark brutality and isolation. This is a good attempt but it falls short in some aspects.It's mud and blood, but it needs more bloody action. It could use somebody more used to shooting blood splattering horror movies. The action is fair stage fighting with some decapitations. It should be much more brutal to match the movie's intentions.The dialog is like bad Shakespeare. The actors try to match the dialog. It mostly feels like a stage play. The director doesn't take full advantage of the cinematography of the vast landscape. The lack of CGI also held it back some. It looks like a movie with more ambition than budget.The biggest aspect of this movie is the reworking of the epic poem. It's trying to inject human nature into a fantasy. It's a terrific idea to try. Not all of it is successful. And it really takes too long to get going. If the movie is about Beowulf & Grendel, they really need to get battling earlier. And they need to get Selma into the story sooner.

OK, I understand poetic license, but did any of the production staff read Beowulf?! Nothing was right. Beowulf is credited as the first English epic and they screwed it up. I'm sure it may of had some merit as a good film, but I couldn't get over the irritation factor. Please anyone that's hoping to get out of reading Beowulf by watching this (which I clearly am not one) realize that you will fail. I'm very sure that the story was great in its original telling, so... tell it that way!P.S. THE NORSE GODS WERE NOT MENTIONED ONCE IN THE ORIGINAL WRITING SO THEY SHOULD'NT BE IN THE SCRIPT! NOR DID GRENDEL HAVE HUMANITY!!