it'd be wonderful if the film encouraged people to read the poem, but i'm not convinced that it will do that to any great degree. people tend to be a little scared of poetry, especially when it's as long as beowulf, and it doesn't help that most translations are written by academics rather than writers, which means they can be very difficult and clunky to read. i'm sure some people will read the poem because of the film, but i think the majority will think a 3182-line poem sounds like far too much hard work, and just stick to the film.

i think that's part of the reason that the film's deviations bother me so much - if people see the film but don't read the poem, they'll be left with a completely mistaken impression of what beowulf really is.

and by the way, if any of you guys are planning on reading beowulf for the first time, and want to read it in english, i would recommend the translations by either seamus heaney or r.m. liuzza.

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I can understand and respect that.
I can see it being a problem too. But if just a handful of people see the movie and then go read the poem, then that's still a good thing.
I'm sure for as many people that read Lord of the Rings after they seen the movies are outnumbered by the ones that didn't.

Maybe it's my own personal arrogance, but I don't think those people matter.

As for reading it, I've had an online translation of it on my computer for over 2 years now, but with being a parent and having some concentration issues due to that, it makes it difficult to get the time to read it.
When I heard about both Beowulf movies being made, I had it in my head that I would take the time to read it, and to my own shame I still haven't.

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I was interested when I first heard about it, but I've been looking at some pictures of it, and i'm not sure if I want to see it. I know its completely CGI, but I was disappointed on how unrealistic it looked... To me it looks like a cartoon. I'm not sure if I could take the story seriously. But who knows... it might be really good. I still might go and see it.

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well, i went and saw beowulf this afternoon. i won't say much though, because i don't want to give away any spoilers for those of you who haven't seen the film or read the poem yet.

basically, the film was so far away from the poem it was untrue - plot, themes and characters were all changed dramatically - and that really made me quite angry as it seemed as though the writers and director were saying the poem isn't good enough as it is (and i truly believe it's more than good enough). i'm tempted to write out a list of all the things they changed (or, in my opinion, got wrong), but i guess that wouldn't really achieve very much, so i won't. essentially though, it was a terrible adaptation of the poem - i'd say the second most inaccurate adaptation of any work of literature i've ever seen, after the bbc's dracula.

i will admit that the story of the film was quite interesting, but it would have been better if they'd made it as a completely different story (with different characters etc) and just said it was inspired by beowulf, rather than trying to claim it was beowulf.

however, i also thought that the film was significantly flawed as a film in its own right, not just as an adaptation of the poem. i don't know what was up with the actors' accents, but they were all over the place. a danish king with a welsh accent and a geatish nobleman who talked like a common londoner? wrong, just wrong. also, the graphics weren't of a consistent quality - some of the characters (like beowulf and hrothgar) were amazing, but others (such as wealtheow) were pretty poor in comparison. the women were particularly poorly realised, and i guess it could have been a comment on the fact that the women in the poem aren't terribly well-developed characters, but it just made the film look uneven.

the film gained a few points for using some old english (grendel and grendel's mother used a few old english words in their conversations, and the scop sings in old english at one point), then promptly lost them for pronouncing it wrong (the 'g' in 'geats' should be prounounced 'y'; and 'scop' should be pronouned 'shop). that was just carelessness, and it really did irritate me.

anyway, i'll stop now and wait for some of you guys to see it, so we can discuss it properly.

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Yeah, that's how I feel as well. I'm not familar with the poem, so the possibility of it being unfaithful to the poem would not bother me really, it's just how it looks. CGI humans work well for some films, The Polar Express for instance but I'm not sure if this looks as good as it could. I've also heard Ray Winstone.... I sincerely hope he deviates from his Cockney accent, I have no idea what Beowulf sounds like, but I'm guessing not like that.

I dunno. I'd be more keen to see it if it was real people I think.

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^ By me and my SS *squiggle hugs*

unfortunately ray winstone keeps his cockney accent. and no, beowulf is not meant to sound like that - he's scandinavian, for starters. he's also meant to be fairly eloquent (one of my favourite lines from the poem says "beowulf unlocked his word-hoard") but i wouldn't say the cockney accent lends itself particuarly well to eloquence.

one other thing i should have said about the film (this time actually in its favour) is that it did make an interesting point about the nature of legend. i can only explain this by way of spoilers, so time for the tiny writing...

beowulf doesn't kill grendel's mother, but he tells everyone that he did, and so that is what is written into what they call 'the song of beowulf' (which i take to mean the poem) and that is what is remembered. similarly, he tells everyone that he killed the sea monster, when the flashback shows that he didn't; and he tore grendel's arm off using a chain and a door, but the next day people are saying that he did it with his bare hands, which is how it happens in the poem. that shows a gap between reality and legend, where legend is a sort of improved version of reality built on the boasts of men. it also suggests that the film is the true story behind the poem - the film represents reality, whereas the poem is legend. thinking about it now, that way the two [/i]are[i] different stories, and so the film isn't changing the poem so much as providing an alternate version, where the poem still sands in its own right (as i said, i think the 'song of beowulf' that the film refers to several times is meant to be the poem). that makes me feel better about it, actually.

i also thought the final dialogue between wiglaf and beowulf was very interesting - when beowulf confesses to not having killed grendel's mother, and wiglaf says something along the lines of "but you killed her when we were young. they sing of it". that suggests that in some way legend has become reality - that it will be remembered as truth, even though it is a lie.

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Wow... lots of argument... especially from ethelfelda...

I won't say much. I hadn't herd of the poem until my History lessons mentioned it a few months before the trailors started showing on tv. So, I can't say much on what I expect. I just know that CGI... they can't always get movements right... like what elbows looklike when bent...

But, It's PG-13! I jumped out of my seat when I saw it was PG-13! Movies rated like that are starting to get rare! It's either the kiddy G or PG movies that my little brother are into, or the nasty no-way-want-to-see R movies.

I can't say anything about plot, characters, nationalities, or anything of that sort because I know nothing of it... Yeah, I would like to read the poem. But at the moment of have a long list of books to read before that... and it just seems to be growing.

And I haven't seen it yet (Maybe I will be able to soon...), and I haven't read the peom yet, so I can't say I support or go against anyone's opinion here! Except for the already obvious opinions like the movie isn't like the liturature, and that it's probably not that good being in all CGI. But I do look forward to seeing it.

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Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

From what I've seen, they're kind of stretching the PG-13 rating a bit, though, Eruraina. That in itself is enough to make me not want to watch it.

And the fact that I agree with ethelfleda's ideas on it (pre- and post-synopsis) as much as I can for not having seen it yet. They correspond to my opinion on what it's gonna be like.

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Yeah, but PG-13 sure isn't as bad as all those R movies out there...

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Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

*cough*Err..about that.....

The senior class of my school just went to see it today, because we read part of Beowulf for English class. They really stretch PG-13. I pretty much had my hand over my eyes for most of it going "Is that really necessary? Did they really have to have that?"

I'm sure the teachers are regretting their decision. It was not good. I really don't prefer to watch those kind of movies, I really don't. Which kind of stinks that I saw it, as I want to read the poem. Because I'm pretty sure the poem won't have quite what they have.

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This is a very intersting thread. I've been curious about this movie, but like ethelfleda... ew... I just felt like they'd ruin it. I read the spoilers though and it sounds like it still might be something worth seeing. I really wish people tried to make movies more like their inspiration though...

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I've finally seen it, and read it(I read a newer english version about a few months ago for school)! Took me awhile... but my family finally rented it!

And, now, I totally agree with ethelfleda on her small print...

the CGI is okay... to a certain point. But, when I read Beowulf about a few months ago, I thought Wiglaf a young man at the time when Beowulf kills the dragon...

And portraying the dragon as Beowulf's son was... interesting. I'm not sure if I should say "okay" to that or be totally against it. But I like the poem's portrayal of the dragon.

(And Wal-Mart has Beowulf in a book in it's original language, and translated into english. I'm so going to try to get that...)

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Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

^ i'd definitely recommend getting an edition with the poem in old english and in translation. i can spend hours poring over mine, comparing the two and seeing how similar/different the language is. i especially love reading the old english text on its own and trying to translate it myself by pulling out words which are similar to those in modern english and applying the little i know about old english grammar and the way in which english has developed (of course, my old english to modern english dictionary helps too!). it's amazing how much of the old english text can be understood with a little bit of time and effort. it's always really exciting when you can recognise an old english word or work out what it means, and can guess at the history of that word...but maybe that's just me.

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Not just you. I do the same thing with Chaucer. And Shakespeare is somewhat the same, though signifigantly easier. I have a great love for words though and, you're right, you learn a lot about a words history doing it.

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Oooh, Chaucer. We're reading Canterbury Tales in English right now, and in our Lit book we have one page of Middle English. I read it and totally fell in love. Now I need to find the whole tales in it...the language is just so beautiful!

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i love reading middle english, too. chaucer's fantastic, and some of the mystery plays and lyrics are great as well.

one of my very favourite poems is a middle english lyric:
fowles in the frith,
fishes in the flod,
and i mon wax wode
for much sorwe i walk with
for best of bone and blod.

which translates as:
birds in the wood,
fish in the river,
and i must go mad
for much sorrow i walk with
for beast of bone and blood.

it sounds sooo much better in middle english.

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