Troy (2004)

***"Where does it end?" -- "It never ends."*** If Homer's mythical epic "The Iliad" is based on a factual story, that story is magnificently depicted in Wolfgang Petersen's 2004 epic "Troy." In other words, don't expect any goofy 'gods' or 'goddesses' like Athena popping out of thin air because "Troy" is a realistic portrayal of the Trojan war. More than that, "Troy" is arguably the best sword &a...

It's yours, take it. Trojan prince Paris is not only having an affair with Spartan Menelaus' woman, Helen. He also lures her away to live with him in Troy. Thus giving the global domination obsessed King Agamenon the launch pad to war with Troy. Which in turn brings into conflict Spartan hero Achilles and Hector of Troy, two of the greatest warriors that ever lived. Troy, budgeted at $175 million, and given to director Wolfgang Petersen with orders to craft a swordplay epic base...

A long watch, but just about a worthwhile one. I enjoyed <em>'Troy'</em>, in short. A film, interestingly given his recent exploits, written by a certain David Benioff. It definitely has more than a few pacing issues, but they only affect the enjoyment factor minorly - at least to me. The score is a little lacklustre, mind. The casting is outstanding, even if I don't think all the performances are anything to truly shout about. I found Brad Pitt and Eric Bana, al...

It took a while, but Brad Pitt finally did some great films. This and Fury stick out on Pitt's resume as his masterpieces thus far. Here, we have the most "credible" and "least Hollywood" look at the Iliad and the Trojan War. The characters are very likely as they were, if they really existed, with motivations explained quite well, save for one motivation. It is hard to see Achilles as someone who tells a kid that living dangerously will make you famous a thousand y...

Now then, where do we start? On the plus side, this is one of the more intelligent applications of CGI in an historical drama setting. The film delivers lots of epic grandeur; the at sea-scenes/battles are classily produced and the attention to detail across the costume and prop departments is outstanding. Sadly, though, the acting isn't at all joined up. At bit like the Dutch football team of the 1980s, we have lots of individual stars but relatively little cohesion between them. Peter O&#...