After the goings on after my last review I thought it best to bring myself back to sanity with a film review. I have done two already and quite enjoy compiling these reviews and you seem to like them so here goes.
The film is Troy. Out this week on DVD and video. This is a film I wanted to see at the cinema but as you know time and life conspire to stop us doing a lot of the things we would like to do when we want to do them and hence this one slipped through my fingers.
It was actually my wife that purchased the film together with another and got a £5 discount if you bought two in WH Smiths, so we settled down to watch it this afternoon. (Sunday) Now one of the things I always do is look at the running time of a film to make sure I can watch it all without interruptions. I was surprised to see it was quite an epic at 156 minutes. I generally adore historical or mythological epics and I looked forward to this one with the same excitement.
The cast looked good with established stars such as Brad Pitt, Peter’O’Toole, Orlando Bloom, and Sean Bean, amongst others.
OVERVIEW
The film is apparently inspired from the classic tale of the Iliad by the blind Greek poet Homer in about 800BC. We have all surely heard of the Trojan horse and the “face that launched a thousand ships”, Helen of Troy; (Diane Kruger) supposedly the most beautiful woman in the world ( I would argue that point as a man, as all they do is get us into trouble and beauty is in the eye of the beholder anyway, (what a mug)) gets abducted by Paris, (Orlando Bloom) a prince of Troy. Only in the film she is not abducted, she goes happily and has clearly been in his bed enjoying his body many a grand old time before that. (Sounds like wish you were here) She is married to the King of Sparta, King Menelaus (Brian Gleeson) and he has a powerful ally in his brother, King Agamemnon of the Mycenaean’s, (Brian Cox). King Agamemnon has for years been trying to unite the Greeks for his own selfish reasons, mainly for absolute power over Greece. He agrees to form
an army under the premise of stealing Helen back from the Trojans, as his brothers honour needs to be defended, but his ulterior motive is the capture of Troy to reinforce his power and domination over Greece.
Troy has never been captured or conquered by any preceding nations and here is his excuse to do it. Ruled by King Priam whom is an aged King (Peter’O’Toole) and aided and defended by his very able son prince Hector (Eric Bana) and Paris, they decide to form a massive armada/army and attack Troy.
Achilles (Brad Pitt) is a rebellious, young warrior, considered to be the best that has ever lived and has fought by King Menelaus’s side previously. He is the son of a Godess and considered invincible. He hates the King but his whole life is dedicated to being immortally remembered for his exploits. He has no fear of death and all you ladies (if you fancy him) will want to watch the film if only to see him half naked in loincloths and naked as well (but you only see his arse). After his past exploits with King Menelaus, Achilles is despondent and apathetic and has no wish to rejoin the King. However Odysseys, (Sean Bean) a friend of both the King and Achilles, mediates between the two and together with another separate meeting with his Godess mother, Achilles is persuaded/decides to join the invasion of Troy.
All I have told you happens in the beginning (first ten minutes) so I don’t feel I am giving much away. The film then obviously follows the story with the invasion and conclusion, as I have told you. Most of us are familiar with the Trojan horse/Helen of Troy story but the next 146 minutes are not mine to tell you, and for you to find out. We all know the ending to the Iliad legend but suffice to say it doesn’t run to script.
HISTORY OR MYTHOLOGY?
I always believe that there is usually some truth to myth. It may be twisted or exaggerated but with events that were that long ago it is difficult to assess how much credibility you can give to these stories.
In 1870 a German archaeologist discovered some remains at Hisarlik. This site is a few Kilometres from the Dardanelle’s in Turkey and at a historical key point geographically in historical importance for trade and strategic positioning. There were many sites unearthed but one in particular, and has now since been dated at 1200 BC, showed all the hallmarks of being sacked and destroyed by invaders. (Interestingly the film starts 3200 years ago)
Since this discovery Homers battlefield descriptions have been confirmed through archaeologists and further discoveries. It is now commonly acknowledged amongst modern historians that there was a conflict at about that time between the West and the East. (Sound familiar?) A city called Ilion has been mentioned in texts and this is recognised as a possible translation of Troy.
An interesting note here is to add that there has been a reference to the name Alexandros, and a historical translation of this is Paris. There has never been any mention of the name Helen. I believe the battle or war involved, if true, was more to do with power and control. If the Trojan horse was real, their certainly has never been any evidence of it. Mythology has a powerful fantasy aspect, but I still believe they are based on some truth. If any of this history is to be believed then the Trojans were Turks, rather than Greeks. Also in the film the war is over within a couple of weeks, in Homers version it lasted 10- 12 years.
BACK TO THE FILM. (Performances)
I could bore you all to tears with so many diverse performances so I will stay with the principle cast.
Sean Bean. (Odysseys). A Great all round performance in my eyes that has further enhanced his reputation and skill as an all round actor. I used to hate him as he couldn’t act to save his life but I now find myself looking forward to seeing him when he appears in a film.
Brendan Gleeson. (King Menalaus). A great rounded all round display.
Brian Cox. (King Agamemnon). He is present almost throughout the film and fills his part admirably.
Orlando Bloom. (Paris). His casting was excellent for the portrayal of this role as a Trojan prince, and I enjoyed his contribution throughout the film.
Eric Bana. (Hector). An outstanding performance and well cast for the role of older brother to Paris, and the more senior Trojan prince.
Diane Kruger. (Helen of Troy) I cant assess her as she was hardly in the film. The story was supposed to be all about her and her relationship with Paris. It was a case of spot the princess.
Peter’O’Toole. (King Priam). An absolutely outstanding performance, and by far the best actor in the film. In one verbal exchange with Brad Pitt it was almost embarrassing to watch the comparison in acting skills.
Brad Pitt. (Achilles). Almost the single sole reason that this film will remain in my “watched”, rather than “will watch again”, category. I believe he was totally miscast as Achilles. His presence confirmed undoubtedly the “Hollywood glorification”, that this film had the overwhelming feeling it gave me. Flash, bronzed, blonde, and covered in muscle, it just didn’t feel right. From being righteous, deep, thoughtful, and loving one minute, he was a complete unfeeling, thoughtless brute the next.
CONCLUSION
Not for me I am afraid and for once I agree with all the professional critics whom have slammed this film. I like to make my own opinion on a film and have quite often looked deeper than they have, and slammed them for being so shallow. I feel Warner brothers with the making of this film have tried to emulate Gladiator. They haven’t even got close. Historical epics of this type I believe are notoriously difficult to portray and conclude successfully. I feel they took the story of the Iliad and twisted it to Hollywood hype standards and failed miserably, although the correct casting of Achilles would have improved it considerably. That for me was the single most important failure.
Overall I can not say the film was a disaster. I did enjoy the action scenes and as always I do love a bit of blood and gore, and a bit of action, of which there is plenty. The gory bits are short lived and the film does not dwell on them. There are some touching scenes and some great special effects. It is easy to follow if you don’t want to tax your brain to much and ideal for a Sunday afternoon if your not doing anything and don’t mind falling asleep.
The film was made in Malta, Mexico, and Shepperton studios. It was directed by Wolfgang Peterson, (Perfect storm) and the Music was by James Horner. He always puts another dimension on things with his almost faultless reading of what is needed for the music score and he excels here.
It’s not a film I would probably watch again but as I have said it does have its plus points and it is a film that would appeal to some. Unfortunately I am not one of them.
TECHNICAL
Running time 156 minutes Available DVD, Video on widescreen. Released 2004 Languages, English, German. Price. £15.99 but available on discount at a cheaper price. (You will have to look yourselves. Certificated 15. Many battle scenes but the bloody scenes are not long and not dwelled on. Sound. Dolby digital stereo.
For details; www. warnerbros.com
Thanks for reading. Tony xx
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Brilliant review of a pretty average film, we did see this in the cinema and felt a bit let down on what COULD have been a great film......Roy
jonathanb 30.11.2004 10:51
I haven't seen this film but my impression from numerous reviews, which you've confirmed again here, is that it comes over as a sort of Gladiator-lite but without that film's excellent script and with Russell Crowe's towering performance replaced by a miscast Hollywood pretty boy, in the hope of putting bums (particularly female ones) on seats. What a waste of a potentially great story. Shame they couldn't have replaced Mr Pitt with a lesser know but appropriate actor and used the millions they would have saved on drafting in a better scriptwriter.
karenes 22.11.2004 15:51
This has to be about the best review of this film I have read so far. They did change a lot of details from the original story for entertainment value but I suppose it would have put a few people off with the original story! K x
There are many reasons to recommendTroyas a good ol' fashioned Hollywood epic, especially ... more
if you've never read Homer's The Iliad. Dispensing with Greek gods altogether, this earnestly massive production (budgeted at upwards of $200 million) will surely...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
For honour... In 1193B.C. the dandy Trojan prince Paris (Bloom) irresponsibly spirits ... more
away the unhappy wife of Menelaus (Gleeson) the Spartan king. Demanding the return of Helen the Greeks launch a thousand ships and lay siege to Troy. Under the com...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: Fantastic cinematography, Great acting by Bana and Pitt especially, Gripping battle sequences Disadvantages: Bloom and Bean's performances are flawed , Slightly over-long
![Troy : The Movie&More (2 Disc Special Edition) [2004] [DVD]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78483204.jpg "Troy : The Movie&More (2 Disc Special Edition) [2004] [DVD]")
![Troy (2-Disc Edition) [DVD] [2004]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78503902.jpg "Troy (2-Disc Edition) [DVD] [2004]")
Nov 1st, 2004
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