Maybe it seemed like a good idea at the time

Rating: 4/10 (29 May 2014)

The first problem this film has is that it simply isn't BEOWULF. It may be inspired by the classic saga of a Nordic warrior and his battles with diabolical monsters (Grendel, Grendel's mother, and a particularly wicked dragon), but it certainly isn't a faithful adaptation of that seminal poem. The script makes huge alterations in both the plot and characters, resulting in a story that has only vague similarities to its source. Grendel isn't a very formidable monster in this film, and his mother, as essayed by Angelina Jolie's CGI avatar, is transformed from a loathsome goblin to a devilish seductress. As for the CGI animation, I've seen both better and worse. The dragon comes across very well in animated form, and is actually one of the most fearsome looking fire- breathers the movies have given us, but the humans all look quite fake and even rather silly. Beowulf isn't the man he is in the original saga, either, where he is portrayed as an honorable and even God-fearing warrior of Good. In this film, he is not merely flawed, but duplicitous, and certainly no Christian (for whom he has little respect). Unfortunately, the film as a whole shows a similar disdain for the poem upon which it is based. Better film adaptations are the also unconventional but basically honorable efforts of BEOWULF AND GRENDEL starring Gerard Butler and THE 13TH WARRIOR featuring Antonio Banderas. As for this film, it is an unreserved failure, save perhaps as a parody of the great work from which it is spawned.