Beowulf and the 13th Warrior closely parallel one another. Both stories begin with a funeral. As Ahmed, Antonio Banderas, is sent out as an ambassador, he finds himself stuck with Noresman. It was kind of funny to see Antonio Banderas play as a shy character. I always see him taking the front stage with a high level of confidence and man power. In 13th Warrior, as a little boy and an oracle enter the Mead Hall (I presume), this part similar to Beowulf. The Scandinavian kingdom seeks help from 13 distinct warriors. Of course the king of this kingdom was named Hrothgar as well.
It was interesting to see How Ahmed watch the Norseman attentively, just to learn some of their language. That shows a great example of observational conditioning, where a person can simply observe a behavior and adapt or learn from it. Ahmed was forced to be the 13th warrior, and compared to the other Norseman, it seemed like he was so puny and scrawny. But of course, one must not judge size. Ahmed proves to the Norseman, that although he may seem small; he is intelligent and later displays great horsemanship by jumping over things. “The dog can jump.”
In Beowulf, Hrothgar fears the monster called Grendol which keeps causing mischievous havoc. In the 13th Warrior, it is the Wendols that prey on the small villages in the Scandinavian kingdom. Once the warriors have arrived, the people of the feeble village gazed at the warriors like they were some God. The villagers knew that these people are here to help them and save them from the Wendols. The Norseman warriors and Ahmed are lead by Buliwyf, whom resembles Beowulf. Yet the difference here is Beowulf sounds more powerful and independent whereas Buliwyf kind of just goes to the village and tells his men what to do. Hrothgar’s son Wiglaff resembles Unferth. They both seem to start a fight somewhere. I think both are both envious of the unknown warriors. The scene involving one of Buliwyf’s warriors to fight and put on a show reminded me of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The battle scene seems like the bigger fella would slaughter the smaller one, yet of course the smaller, older and wiser warrior get the job done.
When it’s time to fight, the gruesomeness of the 13th Warrior had a more detailed action scene in comparison with Beowulf just fighting only Grendal. I guess the equivalent of all the Wendols meant one Grendal. It was gruesome to see heads split from bodies. At the end of the scene, there were no leftover bodies of Wendols, so what does that mean? The Wendols were scared to leave their own kind behind? Or was it because the people did not know that the Wendols were actually people not an evil creature from hell? When Ahmed discovered that a Wendol was a man, why did he suddenly go in Ramboo mode? He was like “NOOOOO!” I didn’t really get that. Was it because it was a sickening idea to know that these humans ate other human’s heads?
Well I can’t wait to watch the rest.
I, too, liked the scene where Banderas is learning the Norsemen's language.
ReplyDeleteI think that Banderas' reaction to finding out they're just people is a bit complicated. First, I think that by realizing that they are human makes them less formidable. A man can be killed whereas a monster might be immortal. Second, I do think you're right that he's a bit sickened by the idea that people would eat other people.
Keep in mind that his character is a scholar not a warrior. He hasn't had the exposure to violence that the Norse have. For him, death in battle is still a new concept.