Beowulf – 5/10

Starring (voices): Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson, Crispin Glover, Anthony Hopkins, Robin Wright Penn, Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich.

Plot: The great and fearless warrior Beowulf (Winstone) comes to kill the monster Grendel (Glover), son of a sea demon (Jolie) who has been wreaking havoc upon the Danish mead hall Heorot, where King Hrothgar (Hopkins) holds a dark and shameful secret that has plagued him and his kingdom.

Good: The film is visually stunning, with the most natural-looking animated characters to date. Also, Robert Zemeckis’ interpretation of Grendel was excellent, presenting one of the most sinister and bizarre creatures to grace the screen in quite a while. The film has a particular extravagant ridiculousness about it that some may find entertaining.

Bad: The film seems as though it doesn’t know if it wants to be taken seriously or not. There is a scene in which Beowulf decides to go nude before fighting Grendel, and different objects in the room hide his private parts from the audience’s view in an Austin-Powers fashion.

Lowdown: Overall, “Beowulf” isn’t very interesting. The only enjoyable element is how ludicrous it is. It’s hilarious at times when it shouldn’t be and is presented, unintentionally, as somewhat of a mockery of itself. Zemeckis’ skills with style and vision are lost in the wonders of the dazzling visual effects of this epic tale.

There is an underlying theme of lust that is very poorly built upon. Had it been given more attention, it could have made for a more compelling story. With that being said, Grendel steals every scene he’s in with his psychotic rampages, and that’s the only thing this film has going for it. The look is no doubt impressive but does not compensate for the cold emptiness of the movie.

The trailers make this film look better than it actually is.

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