Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

Director: Sturla Gunnarsson

Cast: Hringur Ingvarsson as Young Grendel, Spencer Wilding as Grendel's Father, Stellan Skarsgård as Hrothgar, Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson as Grendel (as Ingvar E. Sigurdsson), Gunnar Eyjólfsson as Aeschere, Gerard Butler as Beowulf, Philip Whitchurch as Fisherman, Ronan Vibert as Thorkel, Rory McCann as Breca, Tony Curran as Hondscioh, Martin Delaney as Thorfinn, Mark Lewis as King Hygelac, Elva Ósk Ólafsdóttir as Sea Hag, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson as Unferth, Steinunn Ólína Þorsteinsdóttir as Wealtheow (as Steinunn Ólína Thorsteinsdóttir)

I saw this fascinating bit of cinema at the "Vancouver International
Film Festival", and I have to say that I was impressed.

Not only was the filming location simply breath-taking, but the whole
film seemed to capture the essence of the primitive time and it's
people. A fine achievement in cinematography, wonderfully bereft of
CGI. One can tell that the director and the actors put their whole
heart's and soul's into this memorable work.

The classical tale of "Beowulf" can be a bit of a dry read, especially
in it's original form of Old English. I found this movie to be a
refreshing retelling of the original piece, with a much more human
element added. The background of Grendel is thoroughly explored and the
character of Beowulf is flushed out, so that he is no longer a one
dimensional character as in the writings.

Good or Evil. Black or White or Shades of Grey? The movie delves into
the eternal question of who is our foe and why do we fight? It is a
very important question to ask and to ask often, especially in this
modern day.

I am hopeful that this movie will see distribution, not only in Canada
but in the US and other countries. With all the mindless drivel being
released as of late, a thoughtful and well executed movie would be
sheer delight to behold.