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Robert Zemeckis has never been one to shy away from a challenge. For over twenty years, he's blazed one trail after another. He was the first director to merge live action and animation in a truly seamless fashion with 1988's Who Framed Roger Rabbit?. He filmed Back to the Future II and Back to the Future III back-to-back in 1989, before such gambles were in vogue. And now, he's championing the motion-capture technology introduced in The Polar Express and substantially improved in Beowulf.
Though The Polar Express received its share of praise from critics, many noted that the characters' eyes did not move realistically; they were lifeless, and more than one reviewer used the word "creepy" to describe them. Zemeckis apparently took note of this, and an EOG (Electrooculography) device was used this time around to allow the animators to "track muscle pulses being given off by the eye." The results are staggering. The characters in Beowulf move so subtly, and in such human ways, that moviegoers may be forgiven for occasionally forgetting that they're not watching human actors.
Of course, it's hard to forget this when the screen is filled with demons and dragons. Though there are plenty of human moments, and the film is about relationships as much as heroics, it moves at a breakneck pace from one battle to the next. Whatever downtime there is only allows the audience to marvel at the visuals. The effects work here is so crisp and vibrant, that it'd be worth seeing even if the characters weren't doing anything noteworthy.
But, of course, they are. Based (and I use that word very loosely here) on the epic 8th century poem of the same name, Beowulf follows a man (also of the same name) who ventures to Denmark to rid King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins) and his kingdom of a fearsome demon named Grendel (Crispin Glover). Grendel is massively tall, outrageously strong, and hideous to behold. He appears to be falling apart, which has the unfortunate side effect of exposing his eardrums. This means that the boisterous "merrymaking" of Hrothgar and his men is unbearable to him, and he ventures down from his cave in the mountains to put a stop to it.
This leads to the first of several brutal battles. Though the goriest events are shown in silhouette, there's a great deal of blood, and some of it looks quite convincing. If you didn't know you were watching a PG-13 movie, you probably wouldn't have guessed it. Zemeckis seems to have pulled a fast one on the MPAA, who have allowed a good deal of violence and yes, even nudity, to escape an R-rating, presumably because it's technically animated. Such distinctions are nearly meaningless at this level of technological precision, however, and we're surely headed for a serious debate as to whether or not reality and photorealism should be treated any differently from a ratings standpoint.
Most of the performances are strong enough to show through their digital coating. Ray Winstone is suitably gruff and confident as the title character, and Robin Wright Penn is discerning and vulnerable as Queen Wealtheow. Some of the characters (Angelina Jolie as Grendel’s mother, most notably) look almost exactly like their performers, but some simply feel like them. Winstone looks very little like Beowulf, for the most part, but he still seems to inhabit him. The same is true of John Malkovich, as Unferth, King Hrothgar's advisor.
Given the genuinely exhilarating action and tremendous visual spectacle, Beowulf is likely to be compared to 300, and there's little doubt that the former will appeal to fans of the latter. It's a good deal smarter, however, and touches on themes of power, temptation and regret that may sail over the heads of those looking for a Ritalin substitute.
All in all, Beowulf will not, one would hope, become the definitive modern version of the tale. What it may become, however, is the first film to demonstrate that digital performances can work on a genuinely human level.
Though The Polar Express received its share of praise from critics, many noted that the characters' eyes did not move realistically; they were lifeless, and more than one reviewer used the word "creepy" to describe them. Zemeckis apparently took note of this, and an EOG (Electrooculography) device was used this time around to allow the animators to "track muscle pulses being given off by the eye." The results are staggering. The characters in Beowulf move so subtly, and in such human ways, that moviegoers may be forgiven for occasionally forgetting that they're not watching human actors.
Of course, it's hard to forget this when the screen is filled with demons and dragons. Though there are plenty of human moments, and the film is about relationships as much as heroics, it moves at a breakneck pace from one battle to the next. Whatever downtime there is only allows the audience to marvel at the visuals. The effects work here is so crisp and vibrant, that it'd be worth seeing even if the characters weren't doing anything noteworthy.
But, of course, they are. Based (and I use that word very loosely here) on the epic 8th century poem of the same name, Beowulf follows a man (also of the same name) who ventures to Denmark to rid King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins) and his kingdom of a fearsome demon named Grendel (Crispin Glover). Grendel is massively tall, outrageously strong, and hideous to behold. He appears to be falling apart, which has the unfortunate side effect of exposing his eardrums. This means that the boisterous "merrymaking" of Hrothgar and his men is unbearable to him, and he ventures down from his cave in the mountains to put a stop to it.
This leads to the first of several brutal battles. Though the goriest events are shown in silhouette, there's a great deal of blood, and some of it looks quite convincing. If you didn't know you were watching a PG-13 movie, you probably wouldn't have guessed it. Zemeckis seems to have pulled a fast one on the MPAA, who have allowed a good deal of violence and yes, even nudity, to escape an R-rating, presumably because it's technically animated. Such distinctions are nearly meaningless at this level of technological precision, however, and we're surely headed for a serious debate as to whether or not reality and photorealism should be treated any differently from a ratings standpoint.
Most of the performances are strong enough to show through their digital coating. Ray Winstone is suitably gruff and confident as the title character, and Robin Wright Penn is discerning and vulnerable as Queen Wealtheow. Some of the characters (Angelina Jolie as Grendel’s mother, most notably) look almost exactly like their performers, but some simply feel like them. Winstone looks very little like Beowulf, for the most part, but he still seems to inhabit him. The same is true of John Malkovich, as Unferth, King Hrothgar's advisor.
Given the genuinely exhilarating action and tremendous visual spectacle, Beowulf is likely to be compared to 300, and there's little doubt that the former will appeal to fans of the latter. It's a good deal smarter, however, and touches on themes of power, temptation and regret that may sail over the heads of those looking for a Ritalin substitute.
All in all, Beowulf will not, one would hope, become the definitive modern version of the tale. What it may become, however, is the first film to demonstrate that digital performances can work on a genuinely human level.