 Beowulf
The plot of the film is based on one of
the greatest surviving works of world poetic art - the ancient
Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf. Created by an anonimous author
more than 1000 years ago, this masterpiece has retained over the
years its significance and popularity. (More precisely, the film
is an adaptation of Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crighton
and the novel in its turn had Beowulf as one of the sources).
First page of Beowulf
manuscript
The events derived from the original source
can be easily recognised in the film's storyline. A group of warriors
spends a night in an ominous place and is attacked by monsters.
The warriors seize an arm of one of the unwelcomed guests, while
the latter carry a man's head away. The wendols of the film have
a Motner, so does Grendel in Beowulf. Similar to Beowulf
one of the film's main characters named Buliwyf dies of a monster's
poisonous claws laying down his life to save the others. The dragon
of Beowulf lives in a lair and so do the Wendols. Also, the
way out of their cave is hidden under water, and so is the exit
of Grendel's Mother's lair.
However, apart from evident borrowings
(this is not to reproach the filmmakers because the classics is
for us to use it) the film shows an interesting interpretation
of the poem. This includes several topics that are just outlined
and not included in the plotline but add considerably to the creation
of complex and integral picture of life. An example here is King
Hrothgar's life tragedy. Not only is he too old and helpless to
protect his subjects from an "ancient evil" but he also has a
good-for-nothing and disloyal son, who has killed his own brothers
(the king even has to send his teenager son for help instead of
the elder one). Beowulf also features a king whose life
was ruined after his son was accidentally killed by his brother
during a hunt (which is why his death remained unavenged) and
there is a conceited trouble-maker Unfert who killed his brothers
deliberately.
As we can see, much in the film can be
explained with reference to Beowulf. However, there is
much more to The 13th warrior. Along with skilful interpretation
of the events from Beowulf it amazingly reproduced the
spirit of ancient heroic epic and its specific atmosphere.
For other literary sources of the film
see Eaters of the Dead
and Script.
  
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