Directed by:
Wolfgang PetersenScreenplay:
David BenioffCinematography:
Roger PrattComposer:
James HornerCast:
Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, Brian Cox, Sean Bean, Peter O'Toole, Julie Christie, Saffron Burrows, Brendan Gleeson, Julian Glover (more)VOD (5)
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Swords and sandals abound in this epic tale of love and war starring Brad Pitt as the muscle-bound Achilles. Set in 1193 BC, the film is based on Homer's sprawling epic poem 'The Iliad'. It tells the story of Paris, Prince of Troy (Orlando Bloom), who falls in love with the wife of King Menelaus of Sparta (Brendan Gleeson), the beautiful Helen (Diane Kruger). He persuades her to leave her husband and go back with him to Troy, sparking a war between the Mycenaeans, led by Menelaus's brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox), and the armies of Troy, led by Prince Hector (Eric Bana). The City of Troy, governed by King Priam (Peter O'Toole) has never before succumbed to seige or battle, but Agamemnon and the Mycenae Greeks have a formidable ally: the great and seemingly indomitable Achilles. Political intrigue, passionate love trysts and one-on-one fight sequences take place against a background of sweeping battle scenes as the armies of ancient Greece and the city of Troy engage in their epic and bloody war. (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment)
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Troy is notable primarily as a case study on how Hollywood adapts a classic work with countless characters, motifs and both supernatural and earthbound elements into the form of a spectacular mainstream popcorn epic needing fewer characters, a few cleanly resolved storylines and, mainly, the omission of everything that could be off-putting for the supposed majority of viewers, i.e. everything from deities to non-heterosexual relationships.
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Homer did not deserve this. The Olympian gods didn't deserve it either. The screenwriter completely omitted them, thus depriving the famous story of its true spice, the element of magic and mysticism that so befits ancient epics. If there aren’t any gods or magic, what’s left? A script that is hackneyed, very distantly inspired by “The Iliad”, full of clichés, pathetic chatter and would-be deep thoughts, a boring story that doesn't grab you by the heart and is clumsily told. And there’s not even eye-candy! I just have to laugh at Petersen's talk of "unprecedentedly clear fight scenes", it's just the opposite and the very good Hector vs. Achilles fight doesn't save it. It's not surprising that all the essential fight scenes are seen in just the trailer. If I had to make a comparison, Scott's Gladiator, with about half the budget, looks much more narrative, and although the script was similarly silly, it was a real visual treat, which can't be said of Troy. A few computer-generated shots of the city and incoming ships, Petersen's lacklustre direction lacks any ideas, with rare exceptions. The music wasn't great either, and a few words about the actors: I believed Pitt's arrogant Achilles, Bana is incredibly charismatic, O'Toole is still a great actor, only Bloom, with his not very wide acting register, spoils it and regularly alternates between two expressions: a timid and stubborn. The boss at Warner was in tears during the screening. I wonder if it wasn’t for the desperation of where they burned those 200 million bucks. Poor guy.
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Troy is definitely not bad and it has everything that a big-budget production can offer: young and attractive actors, solid war scenes and somewhat decent romance. Above all, it benefits from the stunning Iliad, although unfortunately it only took the rough skeleton and some essential events from it. The notable drawbacks are Diane Kruger and Orlando Bloom, who seem like advertising mannequins – completely unbelievable. On the other hand, Brad Pitt and Eric Bana are surprising. Wolfgang Petersen is more than a decent craftsman who can handle large budgets and thousands of extras. The ending is powerful and the voice-overs are extremely stylish and suitable for this type of film. It's necessary to see the Director's cut, it has gripping bloody battles and at least half a star up.
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A sugary parade of stars and spectacular fight scenes. The actors are decent and the production design is nice. The fight between Achilles and Hector may be the best I have seen in the genre, though that’s debatable. Troy doesn’t have even a fraction of the charm of William Wyler’s films and is nothing more than a calculated, technically brilliant popcorn flick.
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An ambitious epic that stumbles over its miserable screenplay and idealess directing. A tirade of mediocre scenes and seeming ignorance of the myth make Troy an uninteresting attempt at a great movie which is closer to being a big studio sword-and-sandal Cecil B. DeMille epic than a modern movie intended for the big screen. ♫ OST score: 2/5
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