The first one is called Beowulf and was directed by Graham Baker in 1999. It has got many science fiction and fantasy elements. The main actors are: Cristopher Lambert, Rhona Mitra and Oliver Cotton.

The second film is called Beowulf and Grendel directed by Sturla Gunnarsson and settled in Iceland. The main actors are: Gerard Butler, Stellan Skarsgard and Sarah Polley. This version is closer than the first one to the original poem but there are also new elements and plots created for the film.

The third and newest version of Beowulf is the one directed by Robert Zemeckis in 2007. The actors are: Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins and Angelina Jolie.

Some of the changes made by the film to the original poem are: the style and tone of the dialogue; Beowulf is seen as a flawed man rather than a standard hero; Further Christian elements; Grendel's mother is seen as a "seductress" ; Beowulf's funeral.

How to use a film with the students

It can be very useful for a teacher using a film with the students. The question is which one? And which scene? This depends, of course, on the teacher's preferences on one movie instead of the others. It's better if the teacher chooses a scene which is meaningful in order to be compared with the passage from the poem the teacher has chosen to discuss with the students.

A good procedure in using a film could be:

a. Let the students see the scene a first time without subtitles or screenplay

b. Give the students a screenplay with some gaps to be filled in while they are doing a second watching and listening.

c. Discuss with students the setting, the costumes, the differences they find between the poem and the film.