Two elements of "Beowulf & Grendel" make a mixed-up and unbalanced picture nearly worthwhile. One is Iceland. Shooting in various, epically craggy corners of a country that hasn't been location scouted to death, the film's makers resort to not a single...

*An ancient tale is given a multinational revision. Two elements of "Beowulf & Grendel" make a mixed-up and unbalanced picture nearly worthwhile. One is Iceland. Shooting in various, epically craggy corners of a country that hasn't been location-scouted to death,...

Most may not be familiar with the epic poem that Beowulf & Grendel is based upon, but it's really not necessary when it comes to this elegantly crafted piece of cinematography. While the film does get off to a slow start, it serves a purpose. Character...

Here's a look at some of the arthouse films opening today: "Beowulf & Grendel" RATING 3 Set in the 6th century and shot in Iceland, this sword-and-storm adventure boasts a brave-hearted hero, a wily witch whore and a 7-foot hairy troll. (Like Lois Lane and...

BEOWULF & GRENDEL (two stars) Communication breakdown. Rated R (violence, profanity, sexuality). At the Quad, West 13th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues. LONG the bane of high school seniors, the epic eighth-century poem "Beowulf" is being turned into a...

Adaptation of the Anglo-Saxon saga "Beowulf," in which a soldier searches for a mythic monster. With Gerard Butler, Sarah Polley. Directed by Sturla Gunnarsson (1:42). R: violence, language, sexual themes. At the Quad. Credit Icelandic director Sturla Gunnarsson for...

Icelandic director gives Beowulf the Monty Python treatment Beowulf & Grendel Directed by Sturla Gunnarsson Union Station, opens July 7, Quad Today's moviegoers may have all the respect in the world for Anglo-Saxon poetry, Norse legend, and the tenets of early...

The epic poem Beowulf gets the Monty Python treatment Beowulf told with a postmodern punk sensibility. If nothing else, give the makers of Beowulf & Grendel high marks for boldness, and for a certain playful irreverence. It's a good bet that today's moviegoers...

THE EPIC POEM "Beowulf" is -- as every high school senior should know -- the oldest extant work of any significance in our (or any other modern European) language, and the point from which we normally date the beginning of English literature. In some 3,182 lines of...

'BEOWULF," you may recall, is a ninth-century epic poem traditionally foisted on students by sadistic teachers. Most people graduate with no memory of its content beyond the presence of swords, a monster and pages of impenetrable language. "Beowulf & Grendel" may...

Beowulf & Grendel: Drama. Starring Gerard Butler, Stellan Skarsgard, Ingvar Eggert Sigurdsson and Sarah Polley. Directed by Sturla Gunnarsson. (Not rated. 102 minutes. At the Opera Plaza.) It's a danger that looms for every young actress. Choose the wrong role,...

I'm a sucker for obscure 8th Century (or so) Old English poetry, so when I saw that Beowulf and Grendel had been made, my inner lit geek trembled with equal parts trepidation and excitement. Danes and Geats fighting an evil troll, descended from Cain, the first...

The eighth-century epic poem "Beowulf" is - as every high school senior should know - the oldest extant work of any significance in our (or any other modern European) language, and the point from which we normally date the beginning of English literature. In some...

Coming along like a Viking picture abducted by Monty Python, "Beowulf & Grendel" is so crazy it sometimes works. Other times, this movie seems to have taken a wrong turn in its remote Icelandic location and gotten hopelessly lost. It's based on the epic ancient...

In "Beowulf & Grendel," warriors from Sweden go to Denmark to aid a kingdom being savaged by a powerful troll. "Who does he think he is, some [bleeping] troll Caesar, laying claim to everything his eyes fix upon?" Nowhere in the 3,182 lines of the...

This limp, big-screen adaptation of everyone's favorite Anglo-Saxon epic, which screened at the Seattle International Film Festival last week and is (oddly) beginning its U.S. theatrical run in Seattle, opens with an abrupt and suspenseless chase. A loinclothed...

With another hectic weekend under my belt, I'm feeling pretty good right now about closing out the final seven days of the Festival in strong fashion. I saw nine more movies, attended two more SIFF forums, and recorded two great interviews (one with the filmmakers of...

The 32nd Seattle International Film Festival continues its eight-film tribute to contemporary Danish Cinema tonight with "Manslaughter," a noirish tale about a professor drawn into an affair with a much younger former student (6:45 p.m., Pacific Place Cinemas). Also...

Copyright 2006 The Leader-Post, a division of Canwest MediaWorks Publication Inc. 'Beowulf and Grendel' Tonight-Sunday Regina Public Library Film Theatre Rating 2 1/2 (out of five) - - - Students beware. This movie version of Beowulf is not the one to watch before...

It's like Lord of the Rings: The Prepre-prequel. A mere 1,700 years in the making, the epic Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf comes to the big screen. The stunning scenery, rugged warriors and unrestrained gore are reminiscent of the Rings trilogy, though the stories are...

BEOWULF & GRENDEL Directed by Sturla Gunnarsson Written by Andrew Rai Berzins Playing at the Screening Room Cast Beowulf... Gerard Butler Selma... Sarah Polley Hrothgar... Stellan Skarsgard Grendel... Ingvar E. Sigurdsson Rating: HH1/2 (out of five) - - - College...

In Beowulf & Grendel, the troll has reason to be angry. Trolls are bothersome at the best of times. At the worst of times, they can be downright deadly. That's what the sixth- century Danish king Hrothgar (Stellan Skarsgard) learns in the epic revenge tale,...

It is no secret that Beowulf & Grendel, starring the very loved Gerard Butler, has a die hard group of supporters. The film has slowly made its way across the globe and is now knocking on North America's door. The latest breakthrough for the film was its release...

Beowulf and Grendel Directed by: Sturla Gunnarsson Stars: Gerard Butler, Sarah Polley, Stella Skarsgard, Ingvar E. Sigurdsson Where: Odeon Rating: 2 1/2 - - - College students beware. This movie version of Beowulf is not the one to watch before writing your English...

This is a Canada-UK-Iceland production (not made by Hollywood), and it shows. It's actually refreshing to not see an overly slick epic sword film. Written approximately 1000 AD, anonymously, possibly by someone touted as a priest, this is one of the longest old...