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Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

Hringur Ingvarsson , Spencer Wilding  |  NR |  DVD
3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (223 customer reviews)

Price: $19.89 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Product Details

  • Actors: Hringur Ingvarsson, Spencer Wilding, Stellan Skarsgĺrd, Ingvar Eggert Sigurđsson, Gunnar Eyjólfsson
  • Format: Color, Dolby, Import, NTSC
  • Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
  • Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Number of discs: 1
  • Rated: NR (Not Rated)
  • Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
  • DVD Release Date: September 26, 2006
  • Run Time: 103 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (223 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B000GIXEIG
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,406 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • Learn more about "Beowulf & Grendel" on IMDb

Special Features

  • Commentary by director Sturla Gunnarsson and screenwriter Andrew Rai Berzins
  • Deleted scenes
  • "Wrath of Gods" featurette
  • Cast interviews
  • Costume sketches

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The otherworldly landscape of Iceland lends an appropriate touch of dark fantasy to this modern retelling of Beowulf, the oldest epic poem in the English language. Gerard Butler (The Phantom of the Opera) brings the right balance of physicality and world-weariness as the Swedish hero Beowulf, who travels to Denmark to fight the monstrous troll Grendel (Icelandic superstar Ignvar Sigurdsson), which has been plaguing the house of King Hrothgar (Stellan Skarsgård, buried under a mound of prosthetic hair). However, what transpires is not a battle between good and evil, but a convoluted mystery of sorts, with Beowulf playing the detective who discovers that his foe is more human than monster, and Hrothgar less wronged innocent than catalyst for his own downfall. Director Sturla Gunnarsson succeeds in pulling this legendary story from the dust of academics by contemporizing the dialogue (Andrew Rai Berzins has an excellent ear for hard-bitten palaver), and his visuals are nothing less than striking, but the film attempts to be both monster movie and melancholy drama, while never quite satisfying the requirements of either genre. Regardless, the quality cast (which includes Sarah Polley from Dawn of the Dead as a sharp-tongued witch with a connection to Grendel) and some well-handled action sequences should hold viewers’ attention even when the unnecessarily complex plot does not. --Paul Gaita

Product Description

Adapted from the Anglo-Saxon epic poem, Beowulf, BEOWULF & GRENDEL is a grandly staged medieval adventure that tells the blood-soaked tale of a Norse warrior's battle against the great and murderous troll, Grendel. 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. Beowulf's willingness to kill on behalf of King Hrothgar wavers when it becomes clear that the King is more responsible for the troll's rampages than was first apparent. Starring Gerard Butler.

Customer Reviews

Let's face it people, it's a pretty bad movie. charlieheston  |  28 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
106 of 118 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This film was shown three times at the Sarasota Film Festival although it was originally scheduled twice. It sold out so fast a special third screening was added due to popular demand. On Sunday April 9, 2006 I was fortunate enough to attend. Prior to the show, the Producer and Director were introduced who answered questions after the film. The most interesting questions and answers related to how the ideas and vision of this epic story were creatively conceived and made into reality within the setting of Iceland. It was a six year project from idea to finished product ... It was a huge hit at the Toronto Film Festival and was an equal smash at the Sarasota Film Festival. This film deserves wider distribution at theaters throughout the USA and internationally. It has all the qualities of a multimillion dollar multiple-award Oscar-winning film.

Gerard Butler is superbly cast as Beowulf, a hero and fighter from Greatland who comes to help the Danes fight a troll who has been wreaking havoc among them ... The King of the Danes provides a background of the troll's murderous activity but fails to tell the whole truth to Beowulf and his mighty warriors. The scenery in Iceland is breath-takingly beautiful - views of stark rocky mountains, steep icey cliffs, green hillsides and crashing waves against the shoreline. Although, the Danes were fierce fighters a certain fear had taken hold - they no longer trusted their own gods to support and protect them. They were fighting a troll who managed to elude their fiercest efforts ... The Danes succumbed to baptism and the beliefs of the after life as taught by wandering Christian monks. Amazingly, even the Danish King was baptized after falling deeply into depression and alcoholism while watching some of his best men die. Perhaps the soul of the King was tortured by some dark untold secret? Along with the obvious good versus evil aspects of the story, there are unexpected gems of hilarious moments with respect to the literary license used in the dialogue and deeper hidden meaning of the plot and story line.

After Beowful met Selma the witch and had personally encountered the troll, he uncovered some bewildering aspects of the troll's character and behavior ... rather than seeing him as a wild animal, as described by the Danes, Beowulf noticed the troll carefully selected victims each of whom had harmed or threatened the troll. Beowulf and his warriors continue aiding the Danes but the battle lines are not drawn as straightly or clearly as before. The amazing curves and twists to the story line are very satisfying. The cinematography is outstanding. The battle and fight scenes are just as gruesome as required for the subject matter ... The most appealing aspect of this film is how the big bad monster is shown in a different light toward the end when the deeper hidden meaning of its behavior is better understood. While the film does deviate from the original adventurous epic poem, it has a universal appeal due to the engaging mannerisms of the characters and the gradual blossoming of the character of Grendel. The use of comedy helps balance the more gory gruesome scenes and their aftermath. Due to some adult content should not be viewed by anyone under age 18 without parental consent. Erika Borsos [pepper flower]
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43 of 47 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Unless you just get a kick out of--

1. sweeping, windy, frigid landscapes with a sort of terrifying beauty

2. modern revisionism that updates a classic adventure tale's meaning

3. extremely attractive Northern European he-males

--you may wanna skip Beowulf.

And yet...and yet, I suggest you try it, even though I was less than blown away.

Why?

Well, certainly number one above. Visually, this film takes you someplace stunningly cool (metaphorically, not just literally), an environment so bleak in spots and so callous in others and so apathetic to human suffering, that it's a fitting background for this stark tale of revenge and bloodshed and loss and heroics and loyalty. A cold wind surely does blow, outside and inside the soul.

Also, you may enjoy the revisionist take. Grendel is now the terribly injured party dealing with a sort of bigotry for his "monsterhood": He and his kind are hated for being different, ugly, smelly, not evil. (I believe, if memory serves from the long-ago high school reading, that Grendel did represent evil, and not merely a symbol of aggrieved minority.)

And almost certainly you will enjoy the charisma of actor Gerard Butler. That man is good. He can act--see THE JURY or PHANTOM OF THE OPERA or DEAR FRANKIE or even CRADLE OF LIFE to see how he can inhabit various types of roles and make them come to life with that combination of personal magnetism, vocal expression, facial expression, body language and just plain emotive power. I have no idea why this man is not a huge, huge star. He's got everything it takes, the complete package of ridiculous good looks and acting chops and versatility. He can be funny or menacing or romantic or so vulnerable you weep. Perhaps 300 will do it for him in 2007.

As to the others: Stellan Skarsgaard is dependably good as an actor, if not always top-notch. He's good here, definitely a man chased by a Gredelian fury for his bloody deed long ago. Sarah Polley is less effective as the witch, and yet not totally ineffective. She simply was miscast. (She was terrific in THE SWEET HEREAFTER and I liked her in GO! and know she can act. It's just not a good fit for her, this role.)

Still, at the end of the day, Gerard Butler and the marvelous landscape are the two reasons to buy or rent or just borrow this DVD. Two potent forces of nature--Iceland and Butler--do manage to make a somewhat lackluster movie work in spots.

Bottom line: Try it, because parts of it work. And if you're a Gerard Butler fan, buy it, because he is a gift to cinema and quite easy on the eyes and ears. And if you can't travel to a high Northern wilderness, but kind of want to, visit a remote and windy spot with BEOWULF & GRENDEL.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Fair to Middlin', what a shame. October 9, 2006
Format:DVD
I have eagerly awaited the release of this DVD, as the movie itself doesn't seem to be appearing in U.S. theaters. That's a shame, really. The fantastic Icelandic landscape must be breath-taking on the big screen.

Stellan Skarsgard does an excellent job in his role of Hrothgar, the Dane king whose spirit is beaten and broken by the depradations of a vengeful Grendel. I am a huge fan of Gerard Butler, and enjoyed watching how he fleshed out the character of Beowulf, giving him far more dimension than the rather stilted script offered.

I think that is what I disliked about this movie. Most of the characters never achieved the level of credibility needed due to the stilted, and sometimes awkward dialogue, which ranged from poetic to middle-school boy's bathroom.

I didn't hate the film; I guess I just expected more from it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Really good
This video is not what you expect. Great. Came in the mail very quickly. I enjoyed the extra footage as well.
Published 3 days ago by Appi
5.0 out of 5 stars great!!
I had to have a copy of this after seeing in on Netflix. I'm fascinated with Iceland and also the Beowulf saga
Published 4 days ago by Bibliomania
4.0 out of 5 stars Well worthy of a watch or two says I!
I will not cover the plot or give away any spoilers here! If you want the plot you can read a full synopsis on IMDB or Wikipedia. Read more
Published 22 days ago by Orlando G. Acosta
5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Movie
The better version of this movie from Iceland. Makes the story human and shows both sides well. Be careful your actions can come back to haunt you.
Published 22 days ago by Brad Boucher
3.0 out of 5 stars of the Beowulf retellings, this one's pretty good
Hate to sound like a snob but I love the original epic poem of Beowulf so very much that I guess I'm extra hard to please when others who love it, too, try to put the story on... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Kimba
5.0 out of 5 stars Intensely Beautiful
Absolutely loved this film.An epic heroic tale,depicted very realistically.Visually stunning ,with both beautiful scenery and the handsome Gerard Butler as Beowulf.
Published 3 months ago by Debra Young
3.0 out of 5 stars Solid Cast and Lovely Scenery Redeems What Could Have Been an Awful...
"Beowulf and Grendel" is a mediocre medieval action film loosely adopted from the classic Anglo Saxon poem "Beowulf." The movie takes too long to introduce the lead character. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Kevin M. Derby
4.0 out of 5 stars Good movie
Good movie. Not good at writing reviews so its a good movie and watch it for yourself and make up your own mind
Published 5 months ago by Tammy Cummings
5.0 out of 5 stars A stunning movie on so many levels
Wow! Where to start. I LOVED this movie! Forget the critical reviews. Keep in mind that the poem Beowulf is just that, a poem. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Freya
4.0 out of 5 stars Beowulf
I've seen a few renditions of Beowulf, but didn't want to purchase one that wasn't fairly close to the original writing. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Larry A Barnhart
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Is this film only for raving Gerard Butler fans?
This film received many positive main stream and internet reviews as well as some negative ones. It's not a typical action film but a thoughtful and entertaining film using Beowulf to explore issues of tribalism, revenge and honor. And, yes, the humor in it IS intentional. (Monty Python is... Read more
Sep 27, 2006 by J. Beins |  See all 4 posts
What is with the sea hag?
That's Grendel's mom as far as I can remember. I don't know if a character said that or if I just understood it, but I don't want to watch this atrocity again to find out.
May 21, 2009 by L. Fain |  See all 3 posts
release of this film in the U.S.....
No no no no no. No more Angelina Jolie please. I just have horrid flashbacks of Alexander....no no no.

I want to see THIS version with the most talented Mr. Butler AND the beautiful Icelandic scenery.

And then Hollywood wants to know why noone goes?
May 15, 2006 by rossetti_stunner |  See all 9 posts
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