Carise Comstock, a Language Arts instructor at Julian Middle School, led a field trip last Friday to the Navy Pier IMAX to see the new film Beowulf in 3D, based on the epic poem we all know and loved (or loathed) from our own school days. The seventh-graders of Team 7/8-3 submitted the following reviews:
Gory, but good, if you like action
The best part of “Beowulf” was the animation. The ratio, however, of what was in the poem to what was in the movie was about 50 percent. The main part was right because Beowulf fought all the monsters. In the book, however, Grendel’s mother is ugly and she doesn’t seduce people as Angelina Jolie does in the movie.
In the epic poem, Beowulf comes to the land of the Geats and battles with Grendel and Grendel’s ugly and protective mother. Then he goes back to the land of the Danes and rules there for 50 years, where he battles with the dragon and dies. I think Beowulf dying is a good ending because he fights his whole life and dying from a fight is probably the best way to go.
In the movie, Beowulf goes to the land of the Geats and battles with Grendel and Grendel’s seductive mother. Then the king tells Beowulf that if anything happens to him he will be king. Then the king goes and kills himself. So Beowulf has to stay and rule the Geats. After a long period of time, a dragon comes and terrorizes the city and Beowulf fights it and kills it, but the dragon also kills Beowulf. It’s basically the same ending as the book.
The poem was a little gory. The movie, however, was very gory and had people dying all over the place. In the book, for instance, only one of Beowulf’s soldiers is killed in the battle with Grendel. In the movie, all the soldiers die, except for Beowulf and Wiglaf, Beowulf’s cousin.
It was gory, but the 3D effects made the goriness more exciting. When Beowulf would throw people, for instance, they would seem to come out at the audience.
If you go see the movie, don’t expect the same story as the poem. You will, however, like it, especially if you like action flicks. My rating: Three stars out of four.
John Bannon
It’s fine, if you like blood and gore
You’d think a movie would have some similarity to the book. In Beowulf the scriptwriters did whatever they could to make it longer, and in the process the only thing not changed was the names. For example, Grendel’s mother was not the merciless hag you may imagine, especially if you read the epic poem. Instead, she is a nude seductress, made out of gold and played by Angelina Jolie.
In short, I could sit through it, but I was nauseous a lot of the time due to the unnecessary blood and gore. And I’m not that squeamish. They were trying way too hard to make it suspenseful. As a result, it is just gross and nothing like what I had imagined.
I give it 2½ Stars and would recommend it to people who like bloody movies. If that is you–enjoy!
Joel Browdy
Departing from the original story line
In the epic poem “Beowulf,” a strong young man, Beowulf, is inspired by a story told by a wandering bard. He travels to his enemy’s land to save them from the evil monster, Grendel, who has terrorized their country for 12 years. He easily defeats Grendel by ripping his arm off, but then is confronted with another, equally horrible monster–Grendel’s mother.
The movie Beowulf is different from the epic poem, as movies are often very different from the books. Ray Winstone played the part of Beowulf and did a phenomenal acting job. Other big names in the cast include Angelina Jolie as Grendel’s mother, Anthony Hopkins as the Danish king Hrothgar, Robin Wright Penn as Hrothgar’s Queen Wealtheow, and John Malkovich as the loyal sidekick of the king, otherwise known as Unferth.
Perhaps the largest change made when converting the poem into a movie was the fact that Grendel’s mother was a shape-shifter, instead of a horrible beast. Played by Angelina Jolie, Grendel’s mother is hardly monstrous or ugly. Grendel himself reminds the viewer of a small child throwing a temper tantrum in his gruesome scenes. He complains about how the joyous noise coming from Heorot, the feasting hall, hurt his ears. After his battle with Beowulf, he skulks back to his underwater lair where his mother vows to avenge his death, but not before scolding him for killing humans.
Overall, the movie was an amazing spectacle of 3D animation. The special effects and acting were amazing and exciting to watch. I would give the movie a B- because there were many gory and bloody scenes that really were not required, and I believe that the sexual references and nudity that was woven into the storyline was also a bit too much. It could have been a very good movie, too, if the title had not been Beowulf because there are only shreds of the original story within the motion picture. If you are sensitive to blood or find it frustrating when movies don’t stay true to the original storyline, I don’t suggest this movie for you.
Claire Cuthbert
They should have given it a different title
Creative liberty exists, but there is a difference between that and the idea of re-writing the whole plot of a story. In the movie, the only thing the producers stayed true to were the names. Even the personalities of the characters changed. Sure, Beowulf might have been stuck-up in the poem, but he wasn’t a liar, and he definitely did not become king of the Danes. Also, pretty much every epic was based on Beowulf, including Harry Potter. But did Rowling name her stories Beowulf? No, because that is not what she wrote. The same goes to this movie–this is not “Beowulf”!
Overall, the movie could have been good, but they shouldn’t have lied to the viewers and told them that this was “Beowulf” they were watching. Name it something different at least, like “The Exploits of the Kings of the Danes.” Sure, the name sounds like a boring documentary, but at least it explains what this movie is really about. I personally rate this movie two stars. I would not recommend viewing it unless you have never read the original “Beowulf.”
Yulia Semibratova
Movie’s terrific, if you don’t read the book
Warning: contains spoilers of the movie
The movie Beowulf is terrific, and will be liked better if you do not read the book. The graphics are fine in general, though there are times they aren’t as good, but most people can ignore them. There is a mouthful of language in the beginning of the movie along with other things, such as the blood-baths, and the nudity of some characters, which gives it a PG-13 rating.
Grendel, a horrid monster that makes Gollum from Lord of the Rings look normal, is depicted as a young child literally throwing a temper-tantrum because the music and laughter of Hero, a great feasting hall, hurts the growth in his ear. In comes Beowulf, a cocky youth who refuses to admit his own faults and failures who arrives and kills Grendel. It was a decent battle, although there was a vast amount of blood that made me squirm.
Grendel’s mother, Angelina Jolie, is seductive and wears a golden jumpsuit that shows her entire figure whenever she is seen in the movie. Beowulf’s failure is right here as he sleeps with her, and she gives birth to a dragon. Some 50 years later the dragon is unleashed on a village near the castle, and it is up to Beowulf to stop it. I will not say what happens, but I liked the outcome, in a bittersweet way. The movie was great, and would have been so much better if it weren’t for the annoying cliff-hanger at the end. Altogether, I’d like to see this movie again, as long as it was in 3-D. I give this movie three out of five stars.
Kelsey Shattuck