Beowulf & Grendel (2005)

Director:

Sturla Gunnarsson

Writers:

Andrew Rai Berzins
Anonymous (epic poem "Beowulf")

Release Date:

9 March 2006 (Thailand)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

Tagline:

The Hero. The Monster. The Myth.

Plot:

The blood-soaked tale of a Norse warrior's battle against the great and murderous troll, Grendel. Out of allegiance to the King Hrothgar...

Plot Keywords:

Beowulf | Troll | King | Battle | Dane

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Hringur Ingvarsson	...	Young Grendel
Spencer Wilding	...	Grendel's Father
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Hrothgar
Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson	...	Grendel (as Ingvar E. Sigurdsson)
Gunnar Eyjólfsson	...	Aeschere
Gerard Butler	...	Beowulf
Philip Whitchurch	...	Fisherman
Ronan Vibert	...	Thorkel
Rory McCann	...	Breca
Tony Curran	...	Hondscioh
Martin Delaney	...	Thorfinn
Mark Lewis	...	King Hygelac
Elva Ósk Ólafsdóttir	...	Sea Hag
Ólafur Darri Ólafsson	...	Unferth
Steinunn Ólína Þorsteinsdóttir	...	Wealtheow (as Steinunn Ólína Thorsteinsdóttir)
Sarah Polley	...	Selma
Eddie Marsan	...	Father Brendan
Gísli Örn Garðarsson	...	Erik (as Gísli Örn Gardarsson)
Gunnar Hansson	...	Grimur
Benedikt Clausen	...	Selma's Child
Steindór Andersen	...	Snorri
Matt John Evans	...	Geat Warrior
Jon Einarsson Gustafsson	...	Geat Warrior (as Jon Gustafsson)
Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson	...	Guard (as Thröstur Leó Gunnarsson)
Arnór Hákonarson	...	Rock Throwing Kid
Þórður Helgi Guðjónsson	...	Rock Throwing Kid (as Thórdur Helgi Gudjónsson)
Kristín Hrönn Gunnarsdóttir	...	Dead Woman (as Kristín Gunnarsdóttir)
Daði Freyr Guðjónsson	...	Woman's Child (as Dadi Freyr Gudjónsson)
Egill Ólafsson	...	Necrophile (as Ólafur Egill Ólafsson)
Helgi Björnsson	...	Man
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Don Ellione	...	Dead Guard (uncredited)
Sigurdur Mar Halldorsson	...	Geat Musician (uncredited)
Helgi Marteinn Ingason	...	Geat (uncredited)
Tómas Axel Ragnarsson	...	Geat (uncredited)
Guðmundur Karl Sigurdórsson	...	Dead Guard (uncredited)
Bárður Smárason	...	Geat (uncredited)
Bryjar Ágústsson	...	Geat (uncredited)

Directed by
Sturla Gunnarsson

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Anonymous		epic poem "Beowulf"
Andrew Rai Berzins

Produced by
Andreas Bajohra	....	post producer
Andrew Rai Berzins	....	co-producer
Michael Cowan	....	producer (as Michael Lionello Cowan)
Friðrik Þór Friðriksson	....	executive producer (as Fridrik Thor Fridriksson)
Sturla Gunnarsson	....	producer
Gary Hamilton	....	producer
Douglas Hansen	....	associate producer (as Douglar E. Hansen)
Peter James	....	executive producer
Eric Jordan	....	producer
Anna María Karlsdóttir	....	producer
Alex Marshall	....	executive producer
Jason Piette	....	producer
James Simpson	....	executive producer
Paul Stephens	....	producer
James D. Stern	....	executive producer
Mark Winemaker	....	line producer

Original Music by
Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson

Cinematography by
Jan Kiesser

Film Editing by
Jeff Warren

Casting by
Pam Dixon

Production Design by
Árni Páll Jóhannsson

Costume Design by
Debra Hanson

Makeup Department
Nick Dudman	....	makeup effects designer
Claire Green	....	assistant foam runner
Chris Lyons	....	special effects teeth
Daniel Parker	....	make-up and hair designer
Lesley Smith	....	key hair stylist
Lesley Smith	....	key makeup artist
Paul Spateri	....	sfx make-up supervisor
Jenny Weight	....	makeup effects coordinator

Production Management
Kate Dain	....	unit production manager: UK
John Harcourt	....	post-production supervisor
Jennifer Macleod	....	post-production supervisor
Martin Schlüter	....	production manager
Lisa Gilbert Thomas	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jordana Lieberman	....	third assistant director
Grant Lucibello	....	second assistant director
Wendy Ord	....	first assistant director
Kristie Sills	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Thorfinnur Karlsson	....	carpenter
Robert J. Lewis	....	storyboard artist
Simon Morrissey	....	property master

Sound Department
Steph Carrier	....	sound re-recording mixer
Kathy Choi	....	assistant sound editor
John Elliot	....	foley assistant
Barry Gilmore	....	dialogue editor
Ása Björg Ingimarsdóttir	....	assistant sound
William B. Kaplan	....	sound mixer
Garrett Kerr	....	adr editor
Ingvar Lundberg	....	adr recordist
David McCallum	....	supervising dialogue & adr editor
Simon Okin	....	sound
David Rose	....	sound editor
Lou Solakofski	....	sound re-recording mixer
Vanesa Lorena Tate	....	adr supervisor
Jane Tattersall	....	supervising sound editor
David Yonson	....	adr mixer

Special Effects by
Barry Best	....	mold maker
Nick Dudman	....	creature effects designer
Claire Green	....	assistant moldmaker
Mark White	....	floor supervisor

Visual Effects by
Jon Campfens	....	visual effects supervisor: Switch VFX
Bernadette Couture	....	dustbuster
Gudrun Heinze	....	digital compositor
Safiya Ravat	....	digital compositor
Chris Wallace	....	DI colourist
Aleksandar Yochkolovski	....	visual effects supervisor
Motassem Younes	....	digital opticals

Stunts
Ben Dimmock	....	stunts
Rick English	....	stunt double: Gerard Butler
Rick English	....	stunt performer
Jason Hunjan	....	stunt performer
Luke Kearney	....	stunt double
Mike Lambert	....	stunt performer
Roberto Lopez	....	stunt performer
Jamie Millington	....	stunts
Ray Nicholas	....	assistant stunt coordinator
Peter Pedrero	....	stunt coordinator
Curtis Rivers	....	stunt performer

Camera and Electrical Department
Jacob Barrie	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
Jason Coop	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera
Peter Davies	....	generator operator
Simon De Glanville	....	camera trainee
Gary Deneault	....	gaffer
Christian Drennan	....	key grip
Michael Flood	....	best boy electric
Michael Flood	....	rigging gaffer
Asgrimur Gudbjartsson	....	grip
Goði Már Guðbjörnsson	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
Chris Livingstone	....	best boy grip
Fridrik Orn	....	still photographer
Gordon Segrove	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera dailies
Ingvar Stefánsson	....	electrician
Dean Thompson	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
Nick Wall	....	still photographer

Casting Department
Deirdre Bowen	....	casting: Canada
Buffy Hall	....	casting: UK
Vicky Wildman	....	casting: UK
Sigrún Sól Ólafsdóttir	....	casting: Iceland

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Brawn Barber	....	leather work: The Schmitthenner Armory
Robyn Rosenberg	....	costume set supervisor
Michael Shire	....	armour costumer: Valentine Armouries
Robert Valentine	....	armour costumer: Valentine Armouries
Maria Valles	....	key wardrobe

Editorial Department
Nick Iannelli	....	digital intermediate producer
Alexandra Kosevic	....	post-production coordinator
Arthur Montreuil	....	color timer
Dave Muscat	....	digital intermediate editorial
Catherine Rankin	....	negative cutter
Michelle Szemberg	....	assistant editor
Chris Wallace	....	digital intermediate colorist

Music Department
Ivana Jeftic	....	music supervisor
James Shearman	....	conductor
Hilary Skewes	....	musician contractor

Transportation Department
Hilmar Thor Arnason	....	transportation
Erik Hirt	....	transportation coordinator: Iceland

Other crew
Cynthia Amsden	....	unit publicist
Kim Ballard	....	head of production finance
Shirine Best	....	development assistant
Mel Churcher	....	dialogue coach
Linda Gibson	....	script supervisor
Osk Gunnlaugsdottir	....	assistant to director
Jon Einarsson Gustafsson	....	epk director
Jon Einarsson Gustafsson	....	web director
Mel Hider	....	assistant: Mr. Cowan and Mr. Piette
Susan R. Jones	....	production coordinator
Emily Kyriakides	....	assistant to producer: UK
Marcia Leeder	....	assistant production coordinator
Elena Miles	....	personal assistant to producer: Spice Factory
Lucy Shuttleworth	....	development executive
Arnþruður Dögg Sigurðardóttir	....	locations department
Sigrún Sól Ólafsdóttir	....	cast coordinator
Guðmundur Karl Sigurdórsson	....	adr voice (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Movision (presents) (as Movision Films International)
• Endgame Entertainment (co-production)
• Beowulf Productions Limited
• Film Works, The
• Grendel Productions Inc.
• Icelandic Film (as Icelandic Film Corporation)
• Spice Factory
• Téléfilm Canada
• Union Station Media

Distributors

• Truly Indie (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Media Cooperation One (MC-One) (2006) (Germany) (DVD)
• RTL Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (TV) (RTL7)
• SPO (2007) (Japan) (DVD)
• Union Station Media (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Universum Film (UFA) (2006) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Switch VFX (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Audiolink Radio Communications  walkie talkies
• Film Finances Canada  completion guarantor
• Norðnorðvestur kvikmyndagerð  equipment provided by
• Tattersall Sound  picture editing facilities
• Tattersall Sound  sound post-production
• Toronto Film Studios  movie studio

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, language and some sexuality

Runtime:

Canada:103 min (Toronto International Film Festival) | USA:103 min

Country:

Canada | UK | Iceland | USA | Australia

Language:

English | Latin | Icelandic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Singapore:M18 | UK:15 | Netherlands:16 | Netherlands:12 (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Iceland

Company:

Movision

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: At the beginning, when Grendel's father is running with his son in his arms, it is clearly a dummy.

Quotes:

Brendan the Celt:I'm told you're the Danes' king.
King Hrothgar:Celt, you're a ways from home.
Brendan the Celt:I am. But safe with the sword of Christ.
King Hrothgar:Christ, eh? Heard of him. You ever have much luck with trolls?
Brendan the Celt:I'm of the thought they never cross paths. But if you're willing to bow before Christ you shall feel the blessing of his great strength.
King Hrothgar:My gods don't ask me to bow.
Brendan the Celt:And nor should they dare if they won't protect you. To face God's foes is an honor. I've come to drive this evil out.
King Hrothgar:[laughts] With a stick?
Brendan the Celt:With the fire of Heaven!
King Hrothgar:Well, if your heaven's on fire you'd better look to that.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Wrath of Gods (2006)

How much do you want to think?

Bear with me while I transpose my thoughts from my tangential, blonde head and hopefully it will be worth your read.

Let me first say that Grendel engaged me throughout the movie. There were good performances by many of the cast (Butler's conflicted hero, Skarsgard's noble-but-not-so-noble king) , but Ingvar Sigurdsson owned it as Grendel. Was it the skill of the writer and director in making Grendel a vulnerable human(?) and victim (drawing a sympathy vote from the audience)? Was it Ingvar Sigurdsson's acting skills to express intense emotions and engage the audience despite virtually any words in the script and enough prosthetic make-up to impede facial expressions? All I know is that I connected with Grendel's pain. And isn't that the point?

Another prominent character was the weather. It wasn't on the casting list, but it showed up nonetheless and fought for top billing. It helped to draw you into the ruggedness of the times and the story, but I also found it distracting. Perhaps it's my own distractibility, but for whatever reason, the scenery and weather engaged me more than the story a few times.

The soundtrack was indeed beautiful, but personally, I don't think it fit. To me, the campfire-to-mead-hall timeless folktale would have been better served by a more primitive collection of instruments rather than the majestic orchestra suited to an epic. But that's just my taste.

My main criticism is that to me, the film seemed choppy. I felt like I missed out on some important parts. (I didn't take any washroom breaks, did I?) It may have been the editing. There are others who enjoyed the film much better at the second viewing, so maybe it's all there in the movie beyond my distraction by the scenery and Gerard Butler's rugged good looks. Maybe the movie did its job; after all I'm still chewing on it 2 weeks later. Who knows? I did, however, catch the humor in the film. Andrew Rai Berzins' sharp wit and humor came to the rescue and drew me back in when distractions prevailed.

I'd really like to see it a second time now that my giddiness is over. I was anticipating this movie from the time filming began, and what film can live up to a year's worth of my ruminations and expectations? Now, don't ask me to rate the film with a number. I hate numbers. They don't mean anything. You should never see a movie based on numbers. See it because you want to.

…and if my review left you with more questions than answers, then I've done my job, because that's where the movie left me. Now go see the movie and find your own questions and answers.