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Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that although this adventure is animated, it's not aimed at kids. Some people may misinterpret the fact that it was created by the same filmmakers responsible for The Polar Express as an automatic thumbs-up for kids. But the considerable violence and sexual innuendo are comparable to the content of popular live-action flick 300. As those familiar with the ancient epic poem the movie is based on know, Beowulf defeats the monstrous Grendel ... but not before Grendel kills a lot of innocent people in disgusting, harrowing ways. The violence includes dismemberment, impalement, bashed heads, people being eaten alive, and more. Animated or not, it can be hard to watch (even more so in 3D, an option that some theaters are offering).
Families can talk about whether it's confusing for filmmakers to make and market an animated movie that's so violent and clearly not targeted to kids? Also, does the fact that the animation is so realistic make the violence more upsetting? Why or why not? Why do people tend to react differently to live-action mayhem than they do to similar content that's animated?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Sandie Angulo Chen
Once you get past BEOWULF's slightly creepy, ultra-realistic depiction of actors as animated figures, there's no denying that Robert Zemeckis' motion-capture action adventure is entertaining. Improving on the revolutionary technology he used in The Polar Express, Zemeckis's film is an awe-inspiring achievement in animation.
It's also in no way a film for kids, even if that's the first thought that many moviegoers might have when they see animated characters. Based on the epic poem Beowulf -- you know, the Old English story many of us had to read in high school -- the action is as bloody as anything Quentin Tarantino could conjure up.
Beowulf (Ray Winstone, who has built a solid career playing intimidating toughs) is the head of a small mercenary army that lands in Denmark to help King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins) get rid of a murderous demon cursing his people. After disposing of the grotesque, pus-oozing Grendel (Crispin Glover) in a (literally) naked battle of hand-to-hand combat, Beowulf learns that the monster has an even more dangerous, shape-shifting mother (Angelina Jolie).
Like King Leonidas in 300, Beowulf's hubris as a warrior is evident from his first appearance on screen. But every hero has an Achilles' heel, and Beowulf's is apparently a beautiful woman -- the perfectly cast Jolie -- who promises him wealth and power beyond imagination. Beowulf isn't the first warrior to give into her, and he probably won't be the last, either, since she's seemingly invincible when nude and dripping wet (her feet even take the form of stilettos).
For all of the movie's sweeping action and impressive technology, there's still something substantially more heart-quickening about flesh-and-blood action. Sure, then audiences wouldn't get to see Grendel squish as many heads and eat as many people (at least not in a PG-13 fashion), but there would've been an extra sense of excitement and not as many unintended laughs.
Families with older teens who enjoy period war epics may like 300, Troy, and the live-action depiction of the epic poem Beowulf and Grendel starring Gerard Butler. Young book lovers can check out the graphic novel Beowulf.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentLots of sexual innuendo and partial nudity (it's animated, but the animation is very realistic). Beowulf strips completely naked in preparation to fight Grendel. Various people and items conveniently obscure his genitals, but his bare buttocks are shown several times during the fight. The drunk king wears a robe that half falls off; a buxom woman's cleavage is shown heaving and jiggling. Later she's propositioned by one of Beowulf's warriors, who says things like "my loins are burning" and that he won't be quiet when he comes. A bare-shouldered woman and soldier share a sleeping bag. The king demands his queen produce an heir; Beowulf has a younger mistress in addition to his wife. Grendel's mom can take the form of a gorgeous woman (Angelina Jolie) who emerges dripping wet and naked from the water. |
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ViolenceGrendel -- a disturbing, oozing, pus-filled sight in and of himself -- kills mostly at random. He impales victims, snaps necks, rips off heads and eats them, tears people in two, throws men into fires, squishes heads, etc. Most of the violence is fast, but there's still a great deal of it. Beowulf dismembers Grendel's arm after a long hand-to-hand battle. Grendel's mother kills almost an entire group of warriors, who are shown as shadowy, bloody figures hanging from ceiling beams. Beowulf battles an angry, murderous dragon. Beowulf's army slaughters its enemies on the battlefield. |
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LanguageMilder than the rest of the film: "damn," "hell," etc. |
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Social BehaviorThe message seems to be that men are all-too-easily seduced by beauty and the promise of power. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoThe Danes and their visiting mercenaries drink a lot of mead in the mead hall. Some men are so drunk that they pass out on the table. |
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