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Whoa! Robert Zemeckis, Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary teaming up to tackle BEOWULF'!

But will it be better than the other Beowulf adaptation, the "Fr by Some Dude	Jan 21st, 2005 04:40:37 AM
Impossible. Maybe not.
performance capture doesn't do it for me by fokke	Jan 21st, 2005 04:42:43 AM
I have seen The Polar Express and unless you see it Imax-style, don't even bother. The original story is frickin'cool, but do it old school with some kick ass special effects. That's where Zemeckis's strenght lies.
Haven't seen Polar Express, but by moviemaniac-7	Jan 21st, 2005 05:09:19 AM
it seems cool to me. Or is this another big time announcement that leads into development hell or - maybe worse - will be taken over by lesser Gods? Time will tell. Wasn't The Thirteenth Warrior also some kind of re-telling of Beowulf? Like to see the McTiernan cut of that one some day...
A Beowolf movie shot last year in Iceland... by jaydeluxe	Jan 21st, 2005 05:26:26 AM
...With like Gerard Butler, Julia Stiles, Stellan Skarsg
I sent Harry info and a link to a making-of... by ELGordo	Jan 21st, 2005 05:42:48 AM
for the Icelandic production of Beowulf and Grendel but I guess it wasn't interesting enough or he wasn't invited to the set or something to post it. Here is the site. Plenty of stuff there. http://www.beowulf-movie.com/
This is happening due to the sucess of LOTR by Jugs	Jan 21st, 2005 05:46:18 AM
.....along with a lot of other films. King (crapfest) Arthur anyone?
Cartoon Beowulf, probably rated PG ... by godoffireinhell	Jan 21st, 2005 07:20:25 AM
How could that be any good? That motion capture crap is expensive as hell. Polar Express supposedly cost over $200 million. So you can bet they will make this Beowulf as family friendly as possible so that the kids will bring in the big cash. They'll probably have singing animal choruses and shit like that. Poop.
Zemekis blows by BurlIvesLeftNut	Jan 21st, 2005 07:52:47 AM
I don't even know why I am here.
Steve Bing by phanboi	Jan 21st, 2005 08:15:25 AM
Isn't that the super rich producer who fucks any nu gal in H-Town? And has impregnated the once uberhot Lizzie McHurley? Since he was exec on Shite Express too, he seems to have patented this motion crapture process. I'd choose a Pixar animation over this technique any day. Oh and the BEOWULF story sux
makes sense... by capt jack aubrey	Jan 21st, 2005 08:18:12 AM
Gaiman and Avary are both fascinated by the struggle between good and evil, right and wrong, and characters who tread iffy moral ground... well, they'll get plenty of first-hand experience with THAT by going into business with Zemeckis and Bing... Zemeckis is the worst of the "successful hacks" (although Used Cares is brilliant) and his obsession with doing "gimmick" films has created some of the dullest, most over-rated crap of the past 20 years... I just hope Gaiman and Avary are getting huge paychecks... what's sad is that he, Avary, AND Beowulf deserve much, much better than this
You heard GOOD THINGS about Avary's SANDMAN draft?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? by President Evil	Jan 21st, 2005 08:29:04 AM
Really? How many Down Syndrome cases told you it was good???? Sandman living underground underneath some big city and using some kind of magnetic gravity-controlling device or something or other to destroy his brother...WTF?!?!?!?! It was one of the worst things I've ever read and Gaiman should stab Avary in the ballsack the second they meet for ever raping his creation the way he did. Get it through your big, fat, lard-laced, red-haired fucking skull, Harry! Avary is a ZERO talent! ZE-RO! How he's still working is as perlexing to me as Uwe Boll still directing!
by joeypogi	Jan 21st, 2005 08:31:59 AM
Beowulf was a great story. It was required reading for me once, don't regret it at all.
Horrible idea. Polar Express cost WAY too much for the mediocre by minderbinder	Jan 21st, 2005 08:36:55 AM
The only reason it came close to breaking even (assuming the budget was "only" 160M) was the Imax 3d and the holiday. You could do a movie like this better (and cheaper) using live action. Hell, do it like Sky Captain and use live actors in CGI environments. When did Bob Zemeckis lose his mind?
Messed about with by pammybabe	Jan 21st, 2005 08:47:58 AM
I agree with godoffireinhell. Along with the cute animals they will probably play up the women roles to please a female audience or tack on some stupid romance. I can say this because I am a woman and it pisses me off when they do this (as they did in in LOTR). If you want a great version of Beowulf read the recent Ted hughes one.
I don't like Zemeckis by aphextwin	Jan 21st, 2005 08:53:11 AM
Okay, the Back to the Future trilogy was fun, but I still don't understand that Forrest Gump has snuffed all the significant oscars from Pulp Fiction. Forrest Gump must be one of the most overrated movies of all time. Zemeckis is a mediocre talented Spielberg protege who has a good eye for technique but a (much) lesser one for directing.
I dunno by Mentok	Jan 21st, 2005 08:59:03 AM
Remember the old "performance capture" technology? Cameras? Remember those?
Zemeckis is GREAT by Cerebud	Jan 21st, 2005 09:06:52 AM
I think he's better than Spielberg, actually. Contact was great, The Polar Express was great (unless you're some jaded fanboy), What Lies Beneath was cool, and so on. With Gaiman onboard, I'm really looking forward to this. Zemeckis takes a lot of material that you wouldn't normally think could be a film, and does amazing things with it. Forrest Gump and Contact would have been crap without Zemeckis.
one other thing by Mentok	Jan 21st, 2005 09:14:22 AM
I don't mean to harsh on Avary, Gaiman, or even Zemeckis, all who's work I've enjoyed. Bing I don't mind harshing on...the man is clearly a dick. However, it just seems to me that Beowulf is an epic story that needs to be told in a serious way to retain the sense of grandeur and weight that makes this sort of myth so much fun. I'm not sure a poorly animated Tom Hanks playing all the characters is the best way to do that story justice.
The 13th Warrior... by OnnatopLover	Jan 21st, 2005 09:23:33 AM
was the best adaptation of the Beowulf legend. It was passed over at the box office but enjoyed more success at video rental stores. I love the transformation of Banderas's character from scribe to warrior and the Norsemen rocked. Also, how bout that great soundtrack? Love it! It's one of my faves in the home collection. Check it out if you haven't seen it.
Oh yes the talk back order and format by OnnatopLover	Jan 21st, 2005 09:26:53 AM
For now, the order is correct. Finally. Hope it stays in order. The addition of the author's name in the talkback index is a nice touch as well. Could more updates to the talkbacks be far behind?
Shit by Waterson	Jan 21st, 2005 10:11:17 AM
I like the story, but I don't like this idea - Beowulf, with some fine tuning, could easily become the next great LIVE ACTION trilogy. Three enemies in the book = three movies, and with the expansion of some characters such as Wiglaf (face it, the characters in Beowulf aren't really all that developed for a movie), and a greater look at Beowulf's heritage, this could've been something great. Instead, now it'll be a mere kid's story. It's a shame; Grendel is one of my favorite literary monsters.
I read Beuwolf in 7th grade and I have totally... by Lost Skeleton	Jan 21st, 2005 10:18:34 AM
...forgotten it. I mean the story is just not that memorable. I even remember the Scarlet Letter but I have no idea what happens in B-wolf.
I know it's early... by Childe Roland	Jan 21st, 2005 10:35:41 AM
...but I'm prepared to go ahead and cast my vote for the most idiotic thing typed in this talkback already. And, as fate would have it, it's a tie between phanboi's "...the BEOWULF story sux" (complete with cutesy illiterate spelling of "sucks" to instantly undermine his credibility as a literary critic) and fuckknuckles' comment about Gaiman's stuff being "gay." Actually, fuckknuckles has to be in the running for some sort of lifetime acheivement award in stupidity by now, so maybe we'll give this smaller award to phanboi. Congratulations, dumbass! What's next for you? A dissertation on the merits of reality TV? Back on topic, the Beowulf news has me cautiously optimistic, with an emphasis on the cautious. I'm not convinced any form of animation is the best way to treat such a starkly symbolic epic (although I suppose it might lend itself to anime).
If it's better than that Christopher Lambert turdfest, this Monk by Monkey_King	Jan 21st, 2005 11:02:30 AM
Lambert's films have been touch and go ever since the first Highlander sequel. I understand he wants to keep working, but dammit find a stand-out script out of the piles of shit you do end up taking on. C'mon man!
President Evil, you're thinking of the wrong Sandman script by The UnGod	Jan 21st, 2005 11:16:57 AM
While Avery's Sandman script was actually pretty good and Neil Gaiman liked it. Unfortunately, it was passed over and the subsequent scripts by others are what you describe.
make like a tree and get the hell out of here by MiltonWaddams	Jan 21st, 2005 11:55:25 AM
dork thinks he's going to drown.
oh, come on! Nothing will ever match the genius of the Christoph by TV CASUALTY	Jan 21st, 2005 11:57:05 AM
sniff smell that? That's sarcasm.
Childe Roland by phanboi	Jan 21st, 2005 11:58:21 AM
Me ... a critic? No way. I'm a friggin fanboy so I hate ANYTHING from the get go. And most of all I hate snobs like you Roland. So move on and talk a long walk to the Dark Tower and STFU. SUCKA!
I'm hardly a snob... by Childe Roland	Jan 21st, 2005 12:25:12 PM
...phanboi. I'm just trying to help get you more of the attention you so clearly desire. Sometimes stupid is really, really funny. And then, on the other hand, there's you. You should be funnier if you're going to persist in being as dumb as you are.
Back to the Future turns 20 this year by durhay	Jan 21st, 2005 12:48:11 PM
That's heavy.
Performance Capture? I think I'd rather watch the Christopher La by LordSoth	Jan 21st, 2005 12:59:43 PM
Which really, for a straight to video release, was pretty good. Heck, it was better than Blade Trinity. And better than anything else Lambert did post the first Highlander film.
Please God... by BancaRota	Jan 21st, 2005 01:18:55 PM
Keep Zemeckis away from this. Performance capture. Ugh.
beowulf? so, does he team-up with a vumpire or something? by DarthBakpao	Jan 21st, 2005 01:39:45 PM

Performance capture? Why? by Gheorghe Zamfir	Jan 21st, 2005 01:57:31 PM
I understand the conceit with Polar Express at least, the idea of wanting to make it look like a painting or whatever. But what would be the point of doing this time period, this setting in performance capture? Besides, it would be ten times cooler to see it live action, excepting the live action version that was not 10 times cooler than anything.
NEW RULE: Ancient Light is a total retard. Beowulf takes place i by Bill Maher	Jan 21st, 2005 02:07:51 PM
This movie will lick turtle nuts. There will be song and dance numbers, an obligatory love interest, and other assorted shittiness. King Arthur and LOTR are 100% wank, so if some douchebag bastardizes them in the movies, I don't care. But Troy gives me a good idea of what's going to be done to Beowulf, another true classic. It will be ass-raped like that 12-year-old boy was at Abu Ghraib.
If you want to see a different side to Zemeckis... by Aston Lad	Jan 21st, 2005 02:12:30 PM
...Check out Trespass. It's as different to Back To The Future/Gump/Roger Rabbit etc as you can get. Admittedly he just co-wrote it with Bob Gale, but it's far from his usual fare. Walter Hill was the director by the way.
Avary's Sandman script is online by Gheorghe Zamfir	Jan 21st, 2005 02:17:56 PM
http://www.avary.com/theskinny /sandman/script-sandman7-10-96 .html - for anyone interested. And Forrest Gump gets unfairly crapped on in retrospect, yes, it was overrated, but the backlash against that shouldn't downgrade it crap, its still a very good flick.
Avary, who is an actual Viking descendant by numberface	Jan 21st, 2005 02:31:55 PM
Oh, that should give him some 'extra special' insight into the material.
Grendel... by KOLOBOS REXX	Jan 21st, 2005 03:07:21 PM
...Hell, just adapt John Gardner's anti-existentialist masterpiece "Grendel" into a film... Or even the Matt Wagner Hunter Rose comic! I'd love to see someone do this right...
by Mentok	Jan 21st, 2005 03:35:01 PM
13the Warrior was the best adaptation of the Beowulf legend. It was passed over at the box office but enjoyed more success at video rental stores. We'll just assume you're joking shall we?
The best version of Beowulf is actually Alien and Aliens by Ingeld	Jan 21st, 2005 04:03:57 PM
The parallels are very interesting.
Grendel, Grendel, Grendel by NNNOOO!!!	Jan 21st, 2005 05:09:20 PM
Anyone remember that movie? Mid-'70s, I think-- the Beowulf legend told from the monster's point-of-view. All done with animated paper cut-outs, and tremendously moving. Proof that all the mo-cap in the world is worth nothing without a good script.
This is Absolutely Fantastic News! by REMcycle	Jan 21st, 2005 05:11:56 PM
I've always enjoyed Gaiman's work, and Zemeckis' work is always a fun night at the movies. Putting those two together with Avary, a guy with talent that reaches so far beyond the casual filmgoer's critical ability, is awesome news indeed! The pace and feel of "Zoe" was and continues to be some of the most intense filmmaking since Reservior Dogs (not a coincidence, of course)...and "Attraction" was great in that Ellis and Avary have similar ideas regarding the contemporary guises of our own personal demons: drugs, hate, depression, crime, etc. As Beowulf, a classic of British Lit., not only plays into the traditionally Avery-trodden areas of self-respect and loyalty, it also serves as a fantastic vehicle for the fantastic good vs. evil genre post-LOTR. This is going to be an awesome and important film if it happens!
Mentok... by OnnatopLover	Jan 21st, 2005 05:18:02 PM
I'm not joking. I loved The 13th Warrior, but it royally stunk it up a the box office...i think it only made 30-40 mill worldwide. The battle scenes were great, and I loved the comradarie of the warriors. The cave scene was well done also. One thing I've never understood about the Crichton novel is the way he changed the names of some of the characters, eg: Beowulf changed to Buliwyf, the Grendol are the Wendol. Was Crichton trying to make the story more believable by drawing on the way stories get distorted over time as they are passed down through the ages?
""Avary, who is an actual Viking descendant . . ." by DocPazuzu	Jan 21st, 2005 05:37:13 PM
Just like virtually everyone in Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and a good portion of the British and Irish. And Minnesotans.
I was looking forward to the Gerard Butler one by IMScully33	Jan 21st, 2005 06:33:00 PM
Hopefully this news/version doesn't sweep it under the rug. Maybe it will get it an earlier, bigger release? The production stills from it are awesome, so I have high hopes for it.
Hey, fokke - by THEWANKER	Jan 21st, 2005 07:05:19 PM
Does the fact that Zemeckis is trying to do it for you do it for you?
Too bad Zemeckis is dead... by CountVonGroovy	Jan 21st, 2005 07:08:05 PM
...No, not really. Some dork in my campus paper wrote a negative film review where he said something to the effect of "Robert Zemeckis must be rolling in his grave". The paper made "Zemeckis is dead" jokes for months afterwards. It was lame, but I picked up the habit. This does sound... interesting, maybe that's the word? It is a little ironic that it took a successful film version of "Lord of the Rings" for Hollywood to take making "Beowulf" into a film seriously. I guess there was that Christopher Lambert monstrosity (pun probably intended), but let's not count that one.... "Avary, who is an actual Viking descendant..." Who writes this shit?
Zemeckis is great...NOT by aphextwin	Jan 21st, 2005 08:21:31 PM
"I think he's better than Spielberg, actually" hahahahahahahahah sniff snotter. ahum, you're so funny! nuff said Aphextwin
Sorry, Ingeld, the "Friday the 13th" series is the best Beowulf by Some Dude	Jan 21st, 2005 09:53:13 PM
The Alien films don't have: forest, lake, lodge, etc.
jerk by presidentevil	Jan 22nd, 2005 06:31:55 AM

change you name by presidentevil	Jan 22nd, 2005 06:36:56 AM
im flattered but, i had it first...you probbaly saw it on halo.unreal, or counterstrike...like a can do something about it huh? oh well...i was clever first, and as long as the message is getting passed along, fuck it...keep it i have another good one in mind
Hey Some Dude, consider this by Ingeld	Jan 22nd, 2005 09:26:55 AM
I don't know about the Friday the 13th series. I have only seen the first, but here is a list of parallels: Beowulf: grendel comes from outside attacks the people in the hall; Alien monster comes from outiside attacks people in the ship. Beowulf: monster is the kin of Cain, as in Cain in Abel; Alien: the monster burst from a crewmember named Kane. Beowulf: the monster has acid blood that melts metal swords. Alien: monster as acid blood that melts metal. Beowulf: monster fights grendel unarmed. Alien: Ripley at the end fights monster unarmed--almost naked. Beowulf:hero goes to the realm of the monsters to fight grendel's mother. Aliens: hero descends to the bottom of the complex to fight monster's mother. Beowulf: in the fight with grendel's mother, the hero is armed. Aliens: in the fight with the mother Alien, the hero puts on mechanical armor. What are the parallels with Friday the thirteenth beside setting?
Damn, Lights. by FluffyUnbound	Jan 22nd, 2005 09:55:30 AM
Well THAT was certainly a savage ass-kicking. // To the poster who mentioned the "Grendel" version, I can't vouch for the cartoon, but the Gardner novel kicks ass, particularly in its depiction of a semi-retarded, psychotic Beowulf. Good times.
Yeah right, Asswipe, I've had this name for two years plus... by President Evil	Jan 22nd, 2005 11:42:54 AM
Go fuck your dad in the ass, pickle smoker.
"Beowulf" has already been adapted as "The Thirteenth Warrior". by MrVess	Jan 22nd, 2005 12:37:45 PM
And a fine adaptation it was.
Good points, Ingeld. by Some Dude	Jan 22nd, 2005 03:34:26 PM
The "Friday the 13th" films are about a mother/son killing team that alternate vengeful roles. There are plenty of limbs torn from bodies, often the monsters are drowned in the lake, and the forest setting complete with lodge and lake fits in with Beowulf. The violence also happens every year or two, which I believe was a hallmark of Grendel's attacks (unless I am remembering wrong). There is no dragon, but by the time "Jason X" came out, it looks like the filmmakers wanted to make the parallel obvious so they named one of the spaceships "The Tiamat."
Forgot a couple things... by Some Dude	Jan 22nd, 2005 03:40:24 PM
Oh, I know "Tiamat" doesn't come from "Beowulf," but it is the name of a dragon. Also "Jason X" features another ship called "Grendel."
Some Dude, thanks for the reply by Ingeld	Jan 22nd, 2005 04:22:25 PM
I didn't know about the Friday the 13th influences. The trouble with the Alien franchise is that the connections to Beowulf seem to stop after the second movie. It will be interesting to see what this animated Beowulf will be like.
No, really by Cerebud	Jan 22nd, 2005 09:18:47 PM
Why I give my time to replying to a troll, I don't know, but what's Spielberg done lately that compares to Zemecki's work lately? I'm not saying Spielberg sucks, not at all. I like Spielberg's new stuff. I just have the OPINION that Zemeckis is a bit edgier in directing his films. He's bolder. Fucking trolls.

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Whoa! Robert Zemeckis, Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary teaming up to tackle BEOWULF'!

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