Considering Beowulf will be invading theatres in a little over a month's time, it's not too surprising that the official site has pretty much loaded most of its content on board.
The New Trailer and TV Spots: Grendel's Mother Wearing Pumps?
The new trailer for Beowulf is on the site as well. The only thing truly of interest in this new spot is a few more shots of Grendel in action. Other than that, it's pretty much the same-old: have you noticed that all the trailers have featured Angelina Jolie purring, "Are you the one they call Beowulf?"
One snicker-worthy moment: when Grendel's Mother walks seductively towards our hero, you can see some high heels stuck to her ostensibly naked feet (you can see the same image reproduced in larger form on the site when you check out the image gallery). Considering they didn't have pumps in the 9th Century, that's a mildly anachronistic detail.
The four TV spots are also variations on the same theme, without giving away too much of the plot. At first this seems counter-intuitive, considering the plot of Beowulf has essentially been around since the 9th Century, there's not a lot of spoiling they could do. But I'm sure scriptwriters Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary have added their own wrinkles to the classic poem, which they don't want released before its time.
Beowulf Drinking Game?
In light of the fact that everybody, including the title character, utters the hero's name well-nigh constantly throughout the movie, I'm sure a Beowulf drinking game will quickly develop once this flick hits home video (eg: take a drink any time someone says Beowulf's name in the movie, take 3 drinks every time he says his own name).
The Rest of the Site
You can check out the image gallery (most of which we've already seen in the trailers) , explore a couple of immersive environments – including King Hrothgar's mead hall Heorot and Grendel's Mother's lair –, snag some wallpapers and buddy icons, and look at the trailer and screenshots about the Ubisoft game that will be available for XBox and Playstation in November. The game is rated 'M' and will feature "blood, intense violence, partial nudity and sexual themes."
There's also a restricted area, which is unfortunately only available for U.S. residents, since they ask for your zip code.
Beowulf's Official Synopsis
Here's the synopsis for Beowulf, taken directly from the site.
"In a legendary time of heroes, the mighty warrior Beowulf (take a drink) battles the demon Grendel and incurs the hellish wrath of the beast’s ruthlessly seductive mother. Their epic clash forges the timeless legend of Beowulf.
"Groundbreaking director Robert Zemeckis offers a unique vision of the Beowulf saga in a way that it has never been told before. Beowulf stars Ray Winstone in the title role and Anthony Hopkins as the corrupt King Hrothgar, as well as John Malkovich, Robin Wright Penn, Brendan Gleeson, Crispin Glover, Alison Lohman and Angelina Jolie as Grendel’s mother. Neil Gaiman (the graphic novels Mirrormask, Sandman) & Roger Avary (Pulp Fiction) have adapted the legend to the screen."
Beowulf comes to theatres November 16th.
Fun Fact: Hugo Award-winning author Neil Gaiman's first book was a biography of 1980's new wave band Duran Duran. He quickly followed it up with Ghastly Beyond Belief, a book of quotations co-written with Kim Newman, and Don't Panic: The Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Companion.
