Beowulf

At first glance, Beowulf—an epic (i.e., really long) poem you may or may not remember from an Early English Lit class, originally written in Old English—seems like an unlikely blockbuster film. Yet here it is, raking in nearly $30 million in its first weekend. The recipe? Drop the thous and add some skin and great special effects.

The plot of Beowulf, liberally adapted—some might even say improved—by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary is set in a Viking community. All is well in the mead hall one night as the warriors swap bawdy songs and drink themselves silly. But then a hideous giant called Grendel bursts through the doors and slaughters a dozen men. (In the poem we're more or less left to imagine the misshapen monstrosity, but Beowulf's computer-generated Grendel is seen in all its creepy, gory glory.) The unnerved king (voiced by Anthony Hopkins) sends word far and wide that he needs a hero to slay the monster.

Enter Beowulf, right on cue, the bare-chested, ass-kicking hero of lore. In case anyone was fuzzy on what, exactly, his role is in the film named after him, he declares (in the voice of Ray Winstone), "I am Beowulf, and I'm here to kill your monster." While he's definitely got bravado and street cred, his legend precedes him. Killer of sea serpents, winner of battles, slayer of dragons, milker of cows, you name it, his PR folks are have been working overtime. His manly charms are not lost on the king's young wife.

Beowulf is as good as his word, fatally wounding Grendel in a battle that he decides for some macho reason must be fought naked. There is much congratulations and revelry, until Beowulf is told that Grendel was only part of the problem; he must also slay Grendel's mother. He tracks her down in a spooky cave, only she's not quite as nasty looking as her son, having taken the comely form of a mostly-nude Angelina Jolie. The casting isn't as silly as it sounds, however, and in context Jolie works well.

Beowulf is one of the few animated films I have seen that is actually gripping. The visuals are fantastic, and director Robert Zemeckis makes full use of the liberties afforded by shooting an animated film. Camera movements that would be impossible in the real world are effortless when animated. As impressive as the computer-generated wizardry is, it is not just showing off but actually serves the plot—unlike, say, 300, the pixellated yet paper-thin swords and sandals thriller. Where 300 was visually interesting fluff, Beowulf backs up the spectacle with a solid story. Beowulf is being released in a 3-D version that will be among the best 3-D animation you have ever seen. The images are sharp, the look is beautiful, and if you're one of those people who figures you'll skip it in theaters because you can watch it on your Blackberry or catch it on DVD, you will regret it. Take in the theater experience and enjoy the surround sound and 3-D effects.