...
Meanwhile Agamemnon's brother, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson) is discussing peace with the two Princes of Troy, Paris (Orlando Bloom) and Hector (Eric Bana) between Sparta and Troy. Paris has unfortunately fallen in love with Menelaus's wife, Helen (Diane kruger), and hides her on their ship ... Read review
Brad Pitt picks up a sword and brings a muscular, brooding presence to the role of Greek ... more
warrior Achilles in this spectacular retelling of The Iliad. Orlando Bloom and Diane Kruger play the legendary lovers who plunge the world into war, Eric Bana port...
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
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
Advantages: Great acting and storyline Disadvantages: Can't really think of any, i loved it...
...remember that the battle of TROY lasted around ten years, whereas the film gets though it in around a month. At the start of the film we see the mighty Achilles battle a great warrior called Boagrius summoned by the King of Thessalonia, Triopas, to fight for his lands. With one swing of his sword Achilles wins, allowing Agamemnon (Brian Cox), the king of Greece to take control of Triopas's land and soldiers.
Meanwhile Agamemnon's brother, ... ...who has wanted to destroy Troy for years. They are soon preparing to sail to Troy with over 50,000 men to claim back both Menlaus's wife, but more importantly destroy Troy. Achilles who was at first dubious about going to war with Agamemnon, due to his hatred of the man, sees with the help of Odysseus (Sean Bean), that the only was his name will be remembered throughout the years is to fight at Troy and thus joins them.
I have been advised that I should write only a short synopsis regarding a films plot, apparently too much detail is bad. I will also try to give you my opinions regarding various factors such as the sound, video, action and acting quality without making it too long, apparently precise reviews are what the Guides are now looking for. The film was released in 2004 and although it received some poor reviews I personally thought it was a very well produced film, one of my favourites in fact.
The Plot -
The film follows as you can imagine the story of the battle of TROY, but one must remember that the battle of TROY lasted around ten years, whereas the film gets though it in around a month. At the start of the film we see the mighty Achilles battle a great warrior called Boagrius summoned by the King of Thessalonia, Triopas, to fight for his lands. With one swing of his sword Achilles wins, allowing Agamemnon (Brian Cox), the king of Greece to take control of Triopas's land and soldiers.
Meanwhile Agamemnon's brother, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson) is discussing peace with the two Princes of Troy, Paris (Orlando Bloom) and Hector (Eric Bana) between Sparta and Troy. Paris has unfortunately fallen in love with Menelaus's wife, Helen (Diane kruger), and hides her on their ship as they sail back to Troy. Menelaus soon finds out and goes to his brother who has wanted to destroy Troy for years. They are soon preparing to sail to Troy with over 50,000 men to claim back both Menlaus's wife, but more importantly destroy Troy. Achilles who was at first dubious about going to war with Agamemnon, due to his hatred of the man, sees with the help of Odysseus (Sean Bean), that the only was his name will be remembered throughout the years is to fight at Troy and thus joins them.
Achilles leads his brave myrmidons, including his cousin Patroclus (Garrett Hedlund) onto the beach of Troy ahead of the 50,000 and conquers it with ease. After the battle he is presented with Briseis, a member of the royal family and quickly becomes fond of her, he treats her with kindness and tells her she need not be afraid.
Paris does not want a war and offers to fight Menelaus for Helens hand; whoever won would have her, although unknown to Paris Agamemnon had plans of his own. The two fight, but it results with Hector killing Menelaus and the war begins.
Various battles ensue between the Greeks and Troy until Hector slays Patroclus in a one on one fight, thinking it was Achilles who had refused to fight for Agamemnon. Achilles is angered and rides to Troy's gates where he summons Hector, the two have a great battle finally giving victory to Achilles and rides off with Hectors body. King Priam (Peter O'Toole) respects Achilles and rides into the Greek camp to get his son back, Achilles in turn respects him for being so brave and gives him the body of his son.
Now, I would not like to spoil the end for you, but I am sure most people know what happens in the story of Troy; all I will say is a big wooden horse...
My thoughts -
Acting - I personally though the acting was brilliant, at the time of release the critics suggested Brad was not believable as a hero, I though quite the opposite. He acted exactly how I would expect Achilles to, he has a sense of cockiness about him, which you would expect considering his skill with a sword, but at the same time clearly cares highly for his cousin patroclus and Briseis, his only two weaknesses. The opening scene where he defeats Boagrius immediately draws you into the film and you know you are in for a treat. The CGI is brilliant and the music very engaging.
Brad looks fierce in his armour and although the fighting scenes are a bit fast paced in order to hide Brad's lack of skill with a sword, they still look believable and keep you engaged. The scene where Achilles conquers the Temple of the Sun God upon reaching the troy beach is particularly good, it shows how powerful Achilles can be and how much he is respected by his fellow warriors.
My favourite character however was Hector played by Eric Bana, his portrayal of the great warrior was outstanding and gives a great impression of how a leader should act in times of need. He understands that although the Gods are behind the Trojans they will not fight the war for them. He clearly loves his wife, son, brother and the whole of Troy and will do anything to save them from being overrun by a foreign ruler. There is a scene between Paris and Hector on the boat back from Sparta that I thought was magnificent, Hector cannot believe his brother has smuggled Helen aboard and gets infuriated, a great piece of acting and script writing.
Other mentionable acting roles were Sean Bean as Odysseus; he is wise in combat and the calming voice in Agamemnon's ear, he portrays the character well, so to do Brian Cox and Brendan Gleeson as the two brothers, very believable acting. I was slightly disappointed with Orlando's role as Paris, slightly weak compared to his brilliant acting on LOTR, although I am sure part of it is because of the role he was playing, Paris was never deemed as a hero.
Video - The battles are very well made, highly enticing and fast paced, they keep you on the edge of your seat even when you have seen them a few times like me. As I mentioned the opening and beach scenes are my favourites but there are many others that are equally as well produced.
The camera is constantly well positioned to allow the viewer to see exactly what is going on and focuses well on the parts you should be watching. Wolfgang Petersen the director clearly had great visions of how he wanted the film to be perceived. Major sets of the city of troy were constructed on the Mediterranean island of Malta at Fort Ricasoli, while other shots were filmed in a small town called Mellieha in Malta and Comino.
Sound - The music, composed by James Horner after Gabriel Yared's original score was deemed too old fashioned, is calm when it needs to be and fast when the pace of the film quickens, the music to the beach scenes in particular is brilliant and works well with the on screen action. The sound effects are also loud and clear and add well to the ambiance of the film.
Verdict - I would advise anyone who has an interest in history, the story of Troy or in action films in general to watch this at least once, you will definitely not regret it. You can purchase it for around £3 on Amazon or at Tesco. Although the film lasts 162 minutes the time doesn't drag like it does in some other lengthy films, there is always something going on and the action doesn't let up.
Advantages: Great story, excellent acting and effects Disadvantages: some brutal battle scenes
...way to the gates of Troy where they demand the return of Helen. Paris does the honourable thing to stop a war starting between the two nations and agrees to fight one on one with the Spartan King for the hand of Helen but thing go wrong for the nations when Paris looses his bottle during the fight. Will Helen be able to stop a war breaking out or if not just who will win and what will become of Achilles who people believe is un-killable?
I loved ... ...don’t think hubby quite enjoyed it as much as me as I was constantly asking him questions about the Spartans and the Trojans and just who was on what side! Once I had worked all of it out I did find it was easier to follow. The storyline was interesting and for me I found it to be a love story in a way as it was all about a man falling for the wrong woman, in a small sense it was a very old Romeo and Juliet type of story. After saying this please ...
sewbizzie 08.09.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Troy (DVD)
Advantages: For certain audiences, a lot to look at on the screen Disadvantages: Average in too many respects, doesn't live up to expectations
No, wait, that's the start of another epic, or at least almost. This is a very sanitized version of the Iliad, and I give credit, it does say "inspired by" rather than adapted from. Okay, Patroclus was not Achilles' cousin. They had a different, Greek relationship, if you know what I mean. So did many of the Greeks. But you don't get that here. For all the hours of male muscle and flesh one sees on the screen in this epic, you never get even the ... ...on between them. Troy, the big villain in the Iliad, is the one you end up rooting for, because they are very homespun family values, rather than the politically corrupt but sexually correct Greeks, who are only interested in power and domination. Leaving out the sacrifice of Agammemnon's daughter before they set sail was another bowing to family sensibilities. The ending is also rather cleaned up - for the wanton destruction of a city, there is ...
sutherland1 23.12.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Troy (DVD)
Advantages: Epic storyline, Brad Pitt fans will enjoy! Disadvantages: A little long winded in parts
...Sparta, later Helen of Troy Diane Kruger Patroclus, Garrett Hedlund Director Wolfgang Petersen Musical director James Horner ==The Plot== The movie opens to a scene of battle being arranged between Greek warrior Achilles and a giant of a man named Boagrius. The Greek King, Agamemnon has agreed the fight with the King of Thessalonia, Triopas, the deal is that if Achilles wins Greece will take over Triopas' lands, if Achilles loses, the Greeks will ... ...the Queen is taken to Troy where she is welcomed by King Priam. Predictably, Helen's husband declares revenge and launches a thousand ships (hence the quotation "the face that launched a thousand ships") to declare war on Troy. The battle for Troy that ensues bears virtually no resemblance to The Iliad, but this is of course a Hollywood production! Achilles and Odysseus are among the invading soldiers. Achilles troop of fighters are answerable only ...
brittle1906 30.08.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Troy (DVD)
Advantages: Pitt's fluid swordplay, Bana and O'Toole's fine performances Disadvantages: does not hold interest, "epic" battles lack originality
...classical costumes and armour, visually Troy is certainly satisfying. However, as yet another film that openly attempts to earn the title of "epic", it often struggles to reach the status it believes it holds.
Much liberty has been taken with the source material, although the basic story remains. Lovestruck Trojan Prince Paris [Orlando Bloom] steals away the Spartan Queen Helen [Diane Kruger] at a peace summit. Dismaying his noble brother Hector ... ...war between the kingdoms of Troy and Sparta, as Menelaus sends a vast armada including the renowned hero Achilles [Brad Pitt].
The most notable change is the removal of the constant intervention of the Olmypian gods in this tale. This decision to remove the mythological element in its entirity is jarring at first, but still a valid one as it opens up the humanity of the characters. We still see crucial things such as the temple of Apollo, Achilles' ...
PriyanPhoenix 25.11.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Troy (DVD)
Troy was a breath-taking film with a brilliant plot (admittedly based on a legend), amazing characters and some amazing special effects.
==Story==
The story was well written and believable, however, it is based on a historical legend and is not the work of the makers of the film, so while I liked it, I can't give anybody credit for it. The story was also refreshing in that the good guys lost, which is original.
4/5
==Characters/ performances==
... ...5/5
==Special Effects==
Troy had some incredible special effects including some awe-inspiring battle scenes. Some of my favourite special effects moments were:
The Geek fleet sailing
The landing on the Tojan beach
The first assault on Troy
The destruction of Troy
The film was worth watching just for these, it wasn't shy on special effects.
5/5
==Soundtrack==
The music was done by James Horner and he certainly did one hell of a job. The ...
anakha6 18.11.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Troy (DVD)
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Advantages: Alright if you want an easy afternoon. Disadvantages: Lacking in depth and emotion.
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 ...
Advantages: Gives a Slightly Different Version of Events Disadvantages: Is A Bit Long
The story of Troy is a well known one and I think this is one of the better versions out there although by no means the best.
The film opens with a few scenes of different characters in the movie as the narrator, who we later learn is Menelaus, tells that what is to follow are the true events surrounding the great Trojan war and the downfall of the mighty city of Troy.
We then see a young Cassandra running to her parents King Priam played by John Rhys-Davies and Queen Hecuba played by Maryam D'Abo. The Queen has just given birth to a baby son who has been named Alexandros. However Cassandra warns them that this child will bring about the destruction of Troy unless they kill him. Both parents believe wholeheartedly in Cassandra's predictions and so arrange for Alexandros to be left atop a hillside to die. However a passerby finds ...
Advantages: Adventure, excitement... Disadvantages: (a Jedi craves not these things)
The first blockbuster of the summer is a loose retelling of the epic poem 'The Iliad'. The tale is one of love, honour and patriotism; but mostly of warfare. The young Trojan Princes Paris (Orlando Bloom) and Hector (Eric Bana) are on a diplomatic mission across the Aegean Sea in the Kingdom of Sparta when Paris meets Sparta's young queen Helen (Diane Kruger). The pair fall in love immediately and being unable to bear parting Paris steals Helen away, much to the fury of her husband Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson) and Helen of Sparta becomes Helen of Troy. Menelaus is determined to get Helen back (if only to kill her with his own hands) and so enlists the help of his brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox) who has already achieved his goal of ruling over all the Kings of Greece and seizes the opportunity to unite a force to conquer Troy. Agamemnon ...
With soaring photography that circles from above then swoops in for the action, TROY is Wolfgang Petersen's majestic presentation of the classic Greek legend. It tells the story of an epic battle over Helen (Diane Kruger), the queen of Sparta, who is kidnapped by her lover Paris (Orlando Bloom), the prince of Troy. This infuriates Helen's husband Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson), whose brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox) convinces him to invade Troy and kill Helen. They recruit Achilles (Brad Pitt), the best warrior in Greece, whose bravery, quick feet, and remarkable swordsmanship (not to mention tan biceps, short kilts, and blond locks) have earned him a reputation that is almost as impressive as his ego. Achilles agrees to fight for Sparta, if only for the fame it will bring him. Even Achilles' mother, in a touching scene, advises him to forget mortal achievements and become a hero who will be remembered throughout history. Along with the invasion of Troy, a series of duals must also be fought: Paris, who is heartbreaking in his lovestruck naivety, must go up against the enraged Menelaus; and Achilles must settle a score with Hector (Eric Bana), who is fiercely dedicated to protecting his brother Paris and their father, the frail king Priam (Peter O'Toole). When the war finally ignites in its massive proportions, the action is awesome. And as the increasingly dramatic events play out, TROY earns its own timeless reputation among other action-adventure epics such as GLADIATOR and SPARTACUS.
"...Brad is worth the ticket alone..." (Evening Standard, )
"...Awesome, Exhilarating and Astonishing. This is the greatest sword and sandal epic of all time.." (News of the World, )
"...Never has there been on-screen battles to compare... Quite breathtaking..." (Sunday Mirror, )
DVD Description
With soaring photography that circles from above then swoops in for the action, TROY is Wolfgang Petersen's majestic presentation of the classic Greek legend. It tells the story of an epic battle over Helen (Diane Kruger), the queen of Sparta, who is kidnapped by her lover Paris (Orlando Bloom), the prince of Troy. This infuriates Helen's husband Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson), whose brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox) convinces him to invade Troy and kill Helen. They recruit Achilles (Brad Pitt), the best warrior in Greece, whose bravery, quick feet, and remarkable swordsmanship (not to mention tan biceps, short kilts, and blond locks) have earned him a reputation that is almost as impressive as his ego. Achilles agrees to fight for Sparta, if only for the fame it will bring him. Even Achilles' mother, in a touching scene, advises him to forget mortal achievements and become a hero who will be remembered throughout history. Along with the invasion of Troy, a series of duals must also be fought: Paris, who is heartbreaking in his lovestruck naivety, must go up against the enraged Menelaus; and Achilles must settle a score with Hector (Eric Bana), who is fiercely dedicated to protecting his brother Paris and their father, the frail king Priam (Peter O'Toole). When the war finally ignites in its massive proportions, the action is awesome. And as the increasingly dramatic events play out, TROY earns its own timeless reputation among other action-adventure epics such as GLADIATOR and SPARTACUS.
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