ma-cortes In a medieval land is set this blood-soaked tale of a Norse warrior (Gerard Butler)'s battle against the great and murderous troll, Grendel (Ingvar Egger) . In a besieged land , Beowulf must battle against the hideous creature Grendel . As a flesh-eating creature called Grendel is killing off all those who live in the kingdom . That is until the arrival of Beowulf, a mysterious mercenary who offers Hrothgar, the kingdom's ruler, help to hunt Grendel . Out of allegiance to the King Hrothgar (Stellan Skarsgard) , the much respected Lord of the Danes , Beowulf leads a troop of warriors across the sea to rid a village of the marauding monster. The monster, Grendel, is not a creature of mythic powers, but one of flesh and blood - immense flesh and raging blood, driven by a vengeance from being wronged, while Beowulf, a victorious soldier in his own right, has become increasingly troubled by the hero-myth rising up around his exploits carried out along with Hondscioh (Tony Curran) and his warriors . Beowulf's willingness to kill on behalf of Hrothgar wavers when it becomes clear that the King is more responsible for the troll's rampages than was first apparent. As a soldier, Beowulf is unaccustomed to hesitating. His relationship with the mesmerizing whore , Selma (Sarah Polley) who has fallen in love with him, and creates deeper confusion. Swinging his sword at a great, stinking beast is no longer such a simple act. The story is set in barbarous Northern Europe where the reign of the many-gods is giving way to one - the southern invader, Christ , here represented by a Catholic priest (Eddie Marsan) . Beowulf not only does battle with Grendel, he also fights Grendel's evil mother . Vengeance, loyalty and mercy powerfully entwine in this spectacular Norse adventure.This European co-production begins with a real sense of wonder and surprise and develops with continuous struggles and winding up a fight against the giant Grendel. The picture packs great loads of action , wonderful cinematography , abundant stunts , breathtaking combats and a little bit of gore and blood . Stunning battles scenes illuminate the full-blown adventure with a plethora of engaging action set pieces on the combats in which the heads and limbs are slice off here and there and everywhere while other parts of body are slit open . Good performance from Gerard Butler as Beowulf , a man caught between sides in this great shift, his simple code transforming , falling apart before his eyes and the strange witch well played by Sarah Polley. Both of whom play a story of blood and beer and sweat, which strips away the mask of the hero-myth, leaving a raw and tangled tale .Beowulf was a poem written in England, but is set in Scandinavia , commonly cited as one of the most important works of Anglo-Saxon literature .Beowulf is considered an epic poem in that the main character is a hero who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against supernatural demons and beasts. It has variously been dated to between the 8th and the early 11th centuries. It is an epic poem told in historical perspective; a story of epic events and of great people of a heroic past. Although its author is unknown, its themes and subject matter are rooted in Germanic heroic poetry, in Anglo-Saxon tradition recited and cultivated by Old English poets . The poem is divided between Beowulf's battles with Grendel and with a dragon . The main protagonist, Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, comes to the aid of Hrothgar, the king of the Danes, whose great hall, Heorot, is plagued by the monster Grendel. Beowulf kills Grendel with his bare hands and Grendel's mother with a sword, which giants once used, that Beowulf found in Grendel's mother's lair . Other films based on this epic poem are the following : ¨Beowulf¨(1999) by Graham Baker with Christopher Lambert and Rhona Mitra , ¨The 13º warrior¨ by John McTiernan with Antonio Banderas , Diane Venora , and ¨Beowulf¨ by Robert Zemeckis with Angelina Jolie and Anthony Hopkins .

frederic-127-281006 I have seen this movie after watching the 2007 version on French television. My memory of the Beowulf saga was a black and white picture of a gigantic arm hanging with warriors around. This picture was so terrible that as a youth I kept hiding the book itself, afraid as I was to see the arm escape. The story of Beowulf is tragic. Most Nordic tales are tragic. The great quality of this movie is to actually show the landscape of the Dane Mark of lore. This is the land, which inspired Odin. Great empty spaces. Cold and clear streams. Arid mountains. And a few dwellings by the sea. It could have inspired Kurosawa who would have put ink in the rain to make it dark. It is a very good movie with a true story of love, and recognition. That the land we own today was the land of people before, and that we are trespassers. There is a message of hope, though. Races do mix, and horror is beaten. The tale continues. Excellent movie!

J Vaughn This movie has many redeeming qualities but managed to have enough ludicrous diversions from the Anglo-Saxon poem to receive an indisputable "thumbs down". Let's start with the good aspects: the clothing was great, Heorot looked authentic; the actors were skillfully selected; Grendel's stature and acting was very convincing; Grendel's mother and the scenes with her were perfect; the horses (ponies) were historically correct; the boat (hring-stefna) and the scenes with the icebergs were amazing. Now let's peruse the plethora of negative aspects: Hrothgar was a drunken moron, unlike the Hrothgar presented in the poem; Grendel is a sympathetic hero who cuts his own arm off and tosses Beowulf around like a rag-doll; The Christian missionary is a weak moron-not that there were not weak Christian morons in the northern islands in the 10th and 11th centuries, but the portrayal of this character comes across as ironically "preachy"; God is a joke, which contradicts the entire poem's tone. The premise to this movie is an absurd speculative theory that the pagan oral story/poem "Beowulf" was "Christianized" by a tampering Christian author. This is, well, absurd. On the contrary many critics feel that the Christian elements in the poem are so thoroughly entwined in the poem's actors, dialogue and plot that the poem would fall apart without them. The need that progressive story and film writers feel to rewrite this epic poem is changing the way modern readers of this poem interpret this work. Please, Peter Jackson could you take two years of your life and produce a Beowulf movie that is free from 21st century literary criticism!

Rautus Beowulf & Grendel is loosely based on the epic poem written in the 9th century, I thought it was interesting that they did give Grendel a bit of a back story and I thought it was nice that they showed Beowulf showing some sympathy towards him. The movie had some great location shots and the acting was pretty good, there was only a few things that bugged me. One of which was some of the dialogue spoken in this film. Sometimes it felt out of place, "Don't play the bitch with me." doesn't sound very authentic for the Anglo Saxon times. Another thing that didn't seem right was Sarah Polley's American accent, this is 500 A.D Anglo Saxon times and she's talking with an American accent. The things that are in the film but not in the poem are:The Witch SelmaThe Vikings being Converted Christanity versing the Vikings beliefs Grendal not wanting to fight BeowulfNo DragonGrendel has a sonGrendel has a father Beowulf & Grendel is a pretty good film if you think of it has a new take on the story but if you think of it has an adaptation of the epic poem then you may be sightly disappointed. Check this film out.