Turning one of the oldest stories in history to this centuries latest in pure action-adventure.

Rating: 7/10 (12 May 2008)

My Take: A thrilling summer movie blockbuster.
BEOWULF is perhaps the oldest story that Hollywood still takes pride in making. Remember the very memorable battle between Beowulf, the monster Grendel and the monster's mother? And the moral that pride is the curse? Well, its Hollywood's proudest pleasure to give you the new BEOWULF, the new motion-capture animated baby from the father of the craft (or at least the one who uses it the most), Robert Zemeckis. Although BEOWULF still has those emotionless-eyed motion-capture drones and has a big dose of silly dialog, BEOWULF is an ideal model of an action-packed summer movie adventure. Filled with thrilling moments and heart-pounding battles, BEOWULF is an action fans playhouse, and if your home entertainment system's built for the job, this is a real killer on DVD! On the basis of script, however, Zemeckis still hasn't found the perfection. The dialog is made up of the cheesy old-English dialog that's bound the produce a giggle. Although there are real intentional humor in the film, some are still on the verge of camp. The scene where Beowulf fights with the monster evenly by being naked is still hilarious.
On the action however, Zemeckis is one heck of a carnival barker. Moments of thrills and excitement are at an abundance. From the moment where Grendel breaks through a feast, entirely shot in darkness, is often chilling. Then of course there's Beowulf battling the monster and even a large dragon in the end (and this is a PG-13). That's pure Hollywood, and that's pure action entertainment.
Ask for the actors, we have Ray Winstone as the brave but foolhardy Beowulf (with help from a macho model double), Anthony Hopkins plays the drunken mad Hrothgar, Robin Wright Penn is Wealthhow, Hrothgar's (and later Beowulf's) wife. But Angelina Jolie stills stands out above the rest, baring it all (well, his animation that is) as the monster Grendel's (voiced by Crispin Glover, by the way) mother, vowing vengeance when her monster child was killed (the scene where she emerges all gold, with high heels will just crack you up).
The movie's a great example of how a cheesy old sword-and-sorcery flick can become the next best action movie coming out for the summer. It's a lot of fun and I doubt you'll be bored.
Rating: ***1/2 out of 5.