by Topeka » November 15th 2007 1:37 am
I saw an early screening of this tonight, and I have to say the film's shining points are in its CG rendering. The visuals blow previous films like Final Fantasy and The Polar Express out of the water. Character detail and performance is amazing. Angelina Jolie shines in her digital nakedness. The story, however, does not come across as the timeless tale one might expect from an adaptation of the epic poem.
I saw it in 3D projection as well, and having seen Harry Potter & A Nightmare Before Christmas this way, I'm unfortunately being persuaded that this is a failed gimmick. The effect is either very convincing, or very poor. The majority of scenes feel 'layered' rather than truly dimensional. Action suffers from annoying flickering, similar to aliasing in game engines. But again, when the effect works, it works splendidly. Beowulf is very much centered around ways to flaunt the technology.
Though I do have to admit that I'm looking forward to the experience one more time, and I'm seeing it in IMAX 3D tomorrow. If the technology improves down the road, Star Wars will be awesome. But if it stays how it is now, then I hope the 3D fad passes sooner rather than later.