Animation is movie’s downfall
“Beowulf” is the retelling of the oldest epic poem in the English language. After a gruesome massacre in King Hrothgar’s (Anthony Hopkins) village, the legendary Beowulf (Ray Winstone) is called to defeat the monster responsible for the destruction. Beowulf must conquer the demon, Grendel, and his mother portrayed by the always-provocative Angelina Jolie.
The hype surrounding this film was overwhelming. What will this groundbreaking animation look like? How real? This film, from the same artists who created “The Polar Express” and “Monster House” is a hybrid between animation and visual effects.
The artwork was incredible and the attention to detail in the background of each scene was amazing, as well as the depiction of characters, which were defined to the point of including small arm hairs on their bodies. But – and there’s always a “but” – the movie would have been even better if it were filmed in live-action.
The animation adds some incredible elements – but the whole time I was watching, I was wishing for the scene to be just a bit more realistic. The close ups on the actors and actresses revealed details I would never have thought to include, then as the “cameras” zoomed out, the figures appeared just as rubbery as in “Shrek” or any Pixar film.
Conversely, the digital animation allows for an unrivaled 3-D movie experience. “Beowulf” is a must-see movie not because it utilizes a 1500 year old poem, or because of groundbreaking film techniques, but because the 3-D rendering is something you’ve never seen before.
Suddenly, everything has depth and the forty-foot tower actually looks like a forty-foot tower. Or the hundreds of arrows heading toward the screen break the plane and fly straight to your protective eyewear.
Every aspect of the story was epic. The unbelievably huge monsters and impossible feats of Beowulf – such as holding his breath for several minutes or defeating nine sea monsters or wrestling a twenty-foot monster to the ground in the nude and without weapons – all contribute to the warrior’s legend.
Sexual innuendo found its way into almost every scene from the beginning where the newly arrived warriors stare at a woman’s well endowed bosom, to Grendel’s mother’s seduction (a partially nude Jolie with a tail and heels grown into her feet is another reason to see this movie).
“Beowulf” also comes with an overflow of action that will keep audiences interested until the end. From fighting sea monsters, to dragons, Beowulf does it all.
Robert Zemeckis, if nothing else, has proven why Beowulf’s tale has continued to survive.
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Devon Taylor at devon.taylor@colorado.edu..
