The Cinema of the Four

Beowulf

Just as Great-grandfather Sherlock found himself taking time away from criminal matters to look into ancient matters such as Phoenecian tin traders and palimpsests, so it was that I found my own mind drifting toward that most ancient of the stories of man, “Beowulf.” Of course, my drifting was much influenced by the release of a major motion picture by that name this past weekend.

The first mystery surrounding that very old tale was solved soon after the film began: this new “Beowulf” is completely generated by computational devices and wizards of animated artistry. They work very hard to accomplish their goal of making a very realistic-looking, very visually stunning epic, but consider this . . . no matter how much the generate a movie on a computer, they always use actors to produce the voices one hears.

Nothing remarkable in that, you say? Why should it even be a question?

Well, let me ask you this: Why do film-makers think they can realistically reproduce the look of a human being when they won’t even attempt the sound of one? I would suggest, as one who has observed humanity closely over many decades, that the look of a human being is every bit as complex as the sound.

And therein lies the primary flaw in this ambitious, epic cartoon released as “Beowulf” this season. Whenever movies try to create realistic-looking fake people, there is just something a little bit wrong about them. Something inhuman. Something that distracts from the work as a whole. As we saw in the movie “300” earlier this year, everything except the humans can be computer generated and still make for a lovely bit of work. But like Icarus flying up toward the sun, these ambitious champions of animation inevitably fall short of glory.

That said, Beowulfdoes have entertainment value. Don’t take the kiddies, as it’s about vikings . . . you know, the rape and pillage sort of guys? And a lot of ripped-off limb level violence. And a strange metaphor about power and sticking one’s metaphoric “finger” in a demonic electrical socket.

What Great-grandfather Sherlock might have said:
“It is nothing less than the ancient crown of the kings . . .”