"Troy" is based on the epic poem The Iliad by Homer,
according to the credits. Homer's estate should sue. The movie sidesteps
the existence of the Greek gods, turns its heroes into action movie
cliches and demonstrates that we're getting tired of computer-generated
armies. Better a couple of hundred sweaty warriors than two masses of
50,000 men marching toward one another across a sea of special effects.
The movie recounts the legend of the Trojan War, as the fortress city
is attacked by a Greek army led by Menelaus of Sparta and Agamemnon of
Mycenae. The war has become necessary because of the lust of the young
Trojan prince named Paris (Orlando Bloom), who while during a peace mission to Sparta, seduces the city-state's queen, Helen (Diane Kruger).
This action understandably annoys Helen's husband, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson), not to mention Paris' brother Hector (Eric Bana), who points out, quite correctly, that when you visit a king on a peace mission, it is counterproductive to leave with his wife.
The seduction of Helen is the curtain-raiser for the main story,
which involves vast Greek armies laying siege to the impenetrable city.
Chief among their leaders is Achilles, said to be the greatest warrior
of all time, but played by Brad Pitt
as if he doesn't believe it. If Achilles was anything, he was a man who
believed his own press releases. Heroes are not introspective in Greek
drama, they do not have second thoughts, and they are not conflicted.
Achilles is all of these things. He mopes on the flanks of the Greek army with his own independent band of fighters, carrying out a separate diplomatic policy, kind of like Ollie North. He thinks Agamemnon is a poor leader with bad strategy and doesn't really get worked up until his beloved cousin Patroclus (Garrett Hedlund) is killed in battle.
In a way, "Troy" resembles "The Alamo." Both are about fortresses under siege. Both are defeated because of faulty night watchmen. The Mexicans sneak up on the Alamo undetected, and absolutely nobody is awake to see the Greeks climbing out of the Trojan Horse. One difference between the two movies is that Billy Bob Thornton and the other "Alamo" actors are given evocative dialogue, and deliver it well, while "Troy" provides dialogue that probably cannot be delivered well because it would sound even sillier that way.
Cast
- Brad Pitt as Achilles
- Orlando Bloom as Paris
- Eric Bana as Hector
- Diane Kruger as Helen
- Sean Bean as Odysseus
- Brian Cox as Agamemnon
- Peter O'Toole as Priam
- Brendan Gleeson as Menelaus
- Saffron Burrows as Andreomache
Directed by
- Wolfgang Petersen
Written by
- David Benioff
Action, Adventure, Documentary, Drama, History
163 minutes
An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on
Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men
involved.
This action understandably annoys Helen's husband, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson), not to mention Paris' brother Hector (Eric Bana), who points out, quite correctly, that when you visit a king on a peace mission, it is counterproductive to leave with his wife.
Achilles is all of these things. He mopes on the flanks of the Greek army with his own independent band of fighters, carrying out a separate diplomatic policy, kind of like Ollie North. He thinks Agamemnon is a poor leader with bad strategy and doesn't really get worked up until his beloved cousin Patroclus (Garrett Hedlund) is killed in battle.
The best scene in the movie has Peter O'Toole
creating an island of drama and emotion in the middle of all that
plodding dialogue. He plays old King Priam of Troy, who at night
ventures outside his walls and into the enemy camp, surprising Achilles
in his tent. Achilles has defeated Priam's son Hector in hand-to-hand
combat before the walls of Troy, and dragged his body back to camp
behind his chariot. Now Priam asks that the body be returned for proper
preparation and burial. This scene is given the time and attention it
needs to build its mood, and we believe it when Achilles tells Priam,
"You're a far better king than the one who leads this army." O'Toole's
presence is a reminder of "Lawrence of Arabia"
(1962), which I saw again two weeks ago, and which proved that patience
with dialogue and character is more important than action in making war
movies work.
In a way, "Troy" resembles "The Alamo." Both are about fortresses under siege. Both are defeated because of faulty night watchmen. The Mexicans sneak up on the Alamo undetected, and absolutely nobody is awake to see the Greeks climbing out of the Trojan Horse. One difference between the two movies is that Billy Bob Thornton and the other "Alamo" actors are given evocative dialogue, and deliver it well, while "Troy" provides dialogue that probably cannot be delivered well because it would sound even sillier that way.
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