Beowulf Reviews

Directed by Robert Zemeckis, Beowulf is a 2007 action film based on the Old English epic poem, Beowulf. The film was created using a motion capture process, similar to the technique Zemeckis used in his 2004 film The Polar Express.

1. Metacritic Metascore: 59 out of 100, Mixed Reviews, "For all its visual sweep and propulsively violent action, this bloodthirsty rendition of the Old English epic can't overcome the disadvantage of being enacted by digital waxworks rather than flesh-and-blood Danes and demons." -Daily Variety
2. Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer: 70%, Certified Fresh, "Featuring groundbreaking animation, stunning visuals, and a talented cast, Beowulf has in spades what more faithful book adaptations forget to bring: pure cinematic entertainment."

• The Hollywood Reporter: Beowulf Review
  • "This is not your dad's "Beowulf," as Robert Zemeckis and his 3-D animation team have brought the heroic poem to vibrant life."

• eFilmCritic.com: Beowulf Review
  • "Robert Zemeckis doesn't just give English classes new interpretations to discuss but advances the technological limitations of animation to a level that makes high-definition look like a Falkirk Transmitter."

• Entertainment Weekly: Beowulf Review
  • "Beowulf is a solemnly gorgeous, at times borderline stolid piece of Tolkien-with-a-joystick mythology"

• rogerebert.com: Beowulf Review
  • "In the name of the mighty Odin, what this movie needs is an audience that knows how to laugh. Laugh, I tell you, laugh! Has the spirit of irony been lost in the land?"

• The New York Times: Beowulf Review
  • "The 3-D is necessary to the film only in so far as it keeps your eyes engaged when your mind starts to wander. Stripped of much of the original poem's language, its cadences, deep history and context, this film version of Beowulf doesn't offer much beyond 3-D oohs and ahs, sword clanging and a nicely conceived dragon, which probably explains why Mr. Zemeckis and his collaborators have tried to sex it up with Ms. Jolie, among other comic-book flourishes."

• Philadelphia Inquirer: Beowulf Review
  • "Zemeckis, who blazed trails mixing live-action with animation in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit," blazes not even a footpath here."

• Washington Post: Beowulf Review
  • "I say the story works, but I wish they'd teach these avatars to act."