Their Hearts Were In The Right Place, But....

Rating: 5/10 (6 January 2008)

If you've read Beowulf as I have countless times (both in the original Anglo Saxon,as well as the current English translation by Seamus Heaney),you pretty much know what to expect from the grand epic poem. Okay, I will admit that Beowulf looks fantastic on screen (the digital 3D-CGI is absolutely eye popping!). This is pretty much where it all comes to a screeching halt. With respects to Neil Gaiman (who penned a fantastic screenplay for 'Mirrormask',which blew me out of my shoes),and Roger Avery (responsible for the finer than fine debut 'Killing Zoe' some years back),their collaboration on Beowulf is a crashing disappointment. I never once brought into the concept that Grendel was Hrothgar's illegitimate son by his dally with Grendel's mother (why do you think Grendel slaughtered just about everybody else in the Mead hall except for Hrothgar?). I also didn't buy into Beowulf also going for a tumble between the sheets with Grendel's mother (thus resulting in the dragon in Beowulf's senior years). Honestly,you would do far better than to snap up a copy of the Seamus Heaney translation (especially if you can get ahold of the bi-lingual edition),or even a recording of Beowulf that I got ahold of some time ago (spoken in the original Anglo Saxon),than to subject yourself to this beautiful looking mess of a movie. Hopefully,Robert Zemekis will exercise better caution in selecting his next film project.