bad guy dichotomy. This in my mind makes Troy that much more believable. When events unfold I actually believed they could happen. Japanese cinema is so good at times precisely because we don't know who the good guy is. The question is simply irrelevant.The script was written with a mind to keep the important details of the original story intact but to make it as realistic as possible. The gods are there but only in spirit. They don't get directly involved in the action like the original. I think this is a good thing as well. Troy looks like historical recreation rather than a literal translation of the poem. In one scene I thought there was an unlikely event and researched only to find it actually is in the Iliad. When the writer was asking for too much, he was in fact being true to the text. My bad.OK, visually this film is amazing. Not just the army special effects but the sets and scenery are all beautiful. The costuming is first rate and feels very authentic. Remember, we are going back 3200 years. Quite an accomplishment.The violence is likewise beautiful. Blood and guts galore, but interestingly it is both on the battlefield AND in single combat. A fight fan will appreciate the attention to detail in the combatants' moves. I had never seen a shield wielded so realistically on film. Spear and sword are given very realistic treatments as well.Brad Pitt is a good actor. No question about that. Here he has a few moments where he seems out of place, a pretty boy in a soldier's world. But the combat scenes with him are more than enough to make up for that. It has already been discussed how much bigger he is than in Fight Club. The womens will have plenty to look at. His character is complicated and this is also true to the Iliad. Brad Pitt does this internal conflict lots of justice. His actions in the film really seem appropriate. I never asked, like I do in other films, "Why did he do that?" But this is not Brad Pitt's film. It's Eric Bana's.Eric Bana was amazing. If Achilles was complex, then Bana's Hector is even more so. I had only seen Bana in Black Hawk Down and The Hulk and while BHD was good, there wasn't much for his character to do but be a soldier. The Hulk was so bad I wrote him off completely, blaming his acting for not saving a horrible script. But here in Troy I have new-found respect. He is the main character in the film if you judge by acting power. Lots of emotional struggling going on here that Bana takes on like a pro. He will join this generation's acting elite if he finds more roles like this.The rest of the cast is good enough with a special note for Peter O'Toole and Brian Cox. Their lines are well delivered and their characters are believable.The writing is good as far as plot development goes but I would take a few points away for some of the modern vocabulary. "Stop playing with me," the pretty Helen tells Paris. "Playing" should have been "joking" in that scene since I associate playing with modern English and even worse, with modern hip hop English. I shouldn't be getting that feeling in an ancient epic. A+

yesterday, May 14, in my small city's one of the two theaters, which the audience is usually reluctant to fill, since people prefer to wait for a while and rent a DVD to see a movie in the comfort of their home. Since it was the early afternoon Friday screening people still at work or resting home I thought my company and I would be alone in an empty theater. I was wrong. The theater was full.-------------POSSIBLE SPOILERS--------------The story, though it deviates much from the myth, is still compelling and captivating. Thankfully in Benioff's version of Trojan War the violent battles don't overshadow the human drama. On the contrary, the human factor is emphasized and there is an admirable balance between action and emotion. There are many moments in the story where the culmination of the action and emotion makes the audience hold its breath, sigh, or cheer and clap equally in support of the Greeks and the Trojans, depending on the case . It's an absorbing story.The cast is overall excellent and delivers wonderful performances. Brad Pitt carries the movie on his wide shoulders. He shines with an outstanding performance. Visually he's male perfection, as "godlike" Achilles was, fair-haired, exceptionally beautiful, with the body of a classical ancient Greek sculpture. Pitt renders masterly all the subtle nuances of his complex character. His Achilles is convincingly fearless, powerful in the battle and not only in the battle , violent, proud, arrogant, thirsty for eternal glory, tameless spirit unwilling to submit to any power not even that of the gods , but he's also thoughtful and wise in his own way, with his own code of honor, brave enough to admit his mistakes, capable of feeling/offering love or admiring and praising the enemy when it's worth it, noble, generous, compassionate, and humane at the end. Pitt's fine acting ability makes us feel with Achilles' emotions, his doubts, his grief, his anger, his regrets. Pitt's Achilles is so amazingly complex and fascinating, that you can't do anything but hate him and admire/love him at the same time. He's so solid and imposing, that when he eventually falls you think that what falls is the pillar of the Greek side.Eric Bana is very good, too. He has the much easier task to portray Hector, a one-dimensional character that can be portrayed comparatively more easily than Achilles. Bana's Hector is a noble, brave prince, a lovely family man. There is nothing negative in this character unlike the Homeric Hector who has some serious flaws . He is the Trojan equivalent of Achilles, an equally powerful and admirable man for Achilles to fight with. When they duel, you wish they could win both of them. But tie isn't an admissible result in such a duel. And when finally Hector falls, you think that what falls is the pillar of the Trojan side. Orlando Bloom is decently good as coward Paris. He makes us not really hate him because in the movie -unlike in the Iliad- he has the "noble motive of true love" that purifies him in a way in our eyes and justifies his actions but rather feel pity for the coward, weak, small fry he is. Peter O' Toole is great as always. And all the other actors do a very good job with their supporting roles. Brian Cox is outstanding as villainous Agamemnon. He's so convincing, that all at once I heard my friend next me whisper "Oh! The mother f*cker!" though he knows that Homeric Agamemnon wasn't a villain . The weakest performances come from Diane Kruger and Garrett Hedlund. Kruger is a very beautiful woman, indeed, but she recites her lines quite unconvincingly. As for Hedlund, I just wish they had selected someone else in his place poor Patroclus! The film has a decent pace. But as a viewer who is familiar with the Iliad, where sometimes a single event of the movie is described extensively in more than 800 verses in more than one rhapsodies, I caught myself wanting some scenes to last more and when they came to an end I was wondering: "That was it? Is it already over?" Of course I know it would be impossible for the script to present more extensively some events, because something like that it would increase prohibitively the duration of the movie.The costumes and set are impressive and represent convincingly and realistic to the best of one's ability the ancient world of that era, subsidizing the film's ambience. The score is absolutely functional at times, making the viewer shudder, but in some other scenes one feels that it should be a little more intense and "epical". Petersen directs with steady hand and his direction sometimes takes off and become exciting, but not throughout the whole movie.In conclusion Troy is a very good, absorbing, entertaining movie with top-notch performances and a compelling story, and with the help of a little more inspired direction it could be a masterpiece. Despite the almost three hours I spent in the theater's uncomfortable sit, when it finished I found out that I just wanted to last more. And I'm going to see it for the second time tomorrow, because I have to wait too long until it's released on DVD, so that I can enjoy it again.That's all I would say about the movie if I had never read the Iliad, that masterpiece of the world literature. But since I have read it I can't do anything but criticize some points of Benioff's "adaptation", some deviations of the myth that really hurt. Unlike some Iliad purists, I don't really bother for alterations to the events' sequence or for inventing or omitting characters or for inventing events non-existent in the poem, so long as the message and the substance of the myth remains immutable. But I do bother as a Greek for falsifying the characters of the Greek heroes'. For instance:I don't bother if Agamemnon is killed by Briseis in Troy he's killed anyway in the myth by Aegisthus and his wife Clytaemnistra after he's back home . But I do bother if they portray Agamemnon as a demon and an unscrupulous villain without any virtues, concerning only over his power. Something like that doesn't render Homer's spirit.I don't bother if Patroclus is portrayed as Achilles' young cousin and not as Achilles' dearest friend. But I do bother for portraying Patroclus as a young frivolous brat who needs Achilles' babysitting and cheats Achilles by stealing his armor without his permission in order to be glorified in the battlefield. Something like that doesn't render Homer's spirit, who depicts Patroclus as a brave hero who is distressed by the sufferings/defeat of the Greeks and desires to help them, and eventually helps them with Achilles' permission, since his Achilles' anger gradually blows over.I don't bother if Achilles lives to see the Trojan horse and is killed during the fall of Troy in the myth is killed much earlier and the Trojan horse is invented by cunning Odysseus because the Greeks aren't able to defeat Trojans in the battle without Achilles' help . But I do bother if they include only that brutal scene of Achilles dragging Hector's corpse around the walls of Troy, without pointing out that earlier Hector was trying to undress Patroclus' corpse from its armor, cut his head, fix it on a stake and give his rest body as food to the dogs of Troy. In the myth Hector would have accomplished his intentions if the Greeks hadn't fought bravely to protect Patroclus' body . Something like that doesn't render Homer's spirit, doesn't show that what is actually savage/brute is the war, and makes Achilles who is my favorite hero look like the uncivilized savage and Hector look like the tragic noble prince.All in all they have portrayed the most of the Greeks as a little more villainous and the most of the Trojans as a little more nobles than they really were. And that disappoints me as a Greek, and, furthermore it weakens the original story. One of the reasons that the Iliad is the mother of all stories is that it throws off the hackneyed pattern of "the good guys versus the bad guys" and depicts "good but flawed guys versus good but flawed guys". There isn't black-or-white in the Iliad, but the things are a little more complicated in the poem, just like in the real life. And Benioff should have realized that his story the most close it would have been to the original myth the most advantage would have gained. Thankfully my beloved Achilles is the character they falsified less. They have portrayed him a little more arrogant than he really was, a little impious towards Apollo -he isn't impious in the Iliad- and concerning only over his glory in this war in the Iliad he fights not only for his glory but for honor, too, for king Menelaus' insulted honor namely . Aside from that, he's the complex, interesting, amazing character who has always fascinated me in the Iliad. I love Troy's Achilles almost as I love the Homeric one.In conclusion I would say that, though it deviates a lot from the Iliad/true myth, Troy is still a very good epic movie. Go and see it, you'll have a nice time for about 2.40 absorbing hours, which pass in a blink of the eyes. But after you leave the theater go and read the Iliad. It's worthwhile. You'll be connected with the magnificent and timeless qualities of the Homeric universe.

and Ishtar. But I don't mean to annoy you. On the other hand, I am ANNOYED by some big mistakes that I read in some reviews of Troy. The movie is very good, the acting fine, the archaeological reconstruction of places and monuments excellent especially as regards Agamemnon's palace and the walls of Troy . But above all, Achilles and Patroclus were REALLY cousins. Hesiod says so, other ancient sources confirm this statement. So, please, stop mocking the readers by saying that Troy is a homophobic movie. It is only faithful to the mythological tradition.

the choreography of the sword fighting.I rarely see a film twice in succession. This is one of those times.

some shattering news. In war, there is never a good side or bad side. War is all subjective depending on whose side you are on. Every side thinks they are the good guys. A lot of people were upset about Paris, who is cast as a coward, becoming heroic in the end. Like it or not, we all have cowardliness and heroism within us. We just don't like to admit it. So, ignore the critics and watch this movie. Remember, critics have an opinion just like everyone else and as the old saying goes, opinions are like a**holes. Everyone has one and a lot of them stink. You don't have to agree with me, but don't let someone else make up your mind for you either.

is about the Trojan War, not the Iliad. This war is epic in scale and isn't about poetry.Still, it would be great if Sean Bean were given the opportunity to play Odysseus again. Although not on screen much in Troy, his performance is edgy and true to the legends of the cunning king of Ithaca.

was looking forward to "Troy" in cinemas to rent or buy the DVD and give it another chance in your home. It is truly a much richer, perhaps even exciting experience, as your expectations have been lowered, and often this makes a movie-watching experience better.Anyone who is not tired of the two-huge-armies-face-off battles we've been seeing in "The Lord of the Rings" films and now many other films following in that trilogy's footsteps will sure love the battles in "Troy". "Troy" takes it's battle sequences very seriously and while they have an epic grandeur look about them, at the heart of the battle - men are dying, men are killing other men. It's not all about kicking ass in this film. The battle sequences are a little more graphic than you might expect, and they are certainly brutal.Brad Pitt, looking absolutely incredible here the months of training sure paid off , shoulders the movie with much confidence and adds layers to his arrogant, self-centred Achilles. It's refreshing that Pitt, though technically the central hero of the piece, plays the character in a less likable way than you might expect. Achilles is unpredictable and dangerous, he was "born to end lives". As the greatest warrior in history, he is most definitely convincing.Eric Bana and Orlando Bloom play more emotional heroes, and while Bana manages to give Hector an awesome kick-ass edge, strong nobility and adds many dimensions to his heroic part, Bloom doesn't quite handle the job as well. I do not dismiss Bloom's part in the film to be the "pussy" as so many have put it, but in emotional scenes, Bloom simply falls flat. His lines "I'll hunt deer and rabbit, we can live off the land!" are often laughable due to bad delivery. It is more likely Bloom was put in this part for his looks rather than his talent, which is still in question by yours truly. I did like, though, that Bloom had a more realistic touch, the scene in which he faces Menelaus and fails to defeat him, running back to his brother, is nerve-wracking and powerful, not all men were great butt-kicking heroes, even back then, so it's good to see that put into the film, even if he does play the more "pussy" role.One of my main complaints about the film the first time around was the unnecessary relationship between Briseis and Achilles. With more viewings, I have come to appreciate this subplot a lot more. As Achilles puts it, she gave him peace in a time of violence and war. Achilles is a character so often covered in other men's blood, constantly killing and fighting, that Briseis allows for Pitt to show the more sensitive side is actually useful to the character's development. Their final scene together is very emotional and the actors have genuine chemistry.Wolfgang Petersen was criticised for being too much of a claustrophobic director to take on one of the biggest films ever made, but he handles the epic, large scale of the film nicely, if perhaps maybe not using as many swooping, stunning shots as he could. I certainly would've liked to have seen more of the set of Troy exposed. In the inevitable fire-fuelled finale it is showcased brilliantly, but more of these kinds of sequences would've been useful for Petersen to shut his critics up. He does a good job with the film, rooting the battles in genuine emotion and intelligence, and giving it a distinctive, memorable atmosphere and artistic look.Perhaps as a historical piece, "Troy" isn't the film you're looking for. But for sheer entertainment value, it is one of the best films of 2004. Again, I urge anyone who was disappointed by the film to rent/buy it on DVD and give it another spin, it's not a decision you'll regret, I know I didn't.9/10

for all his personal losses… Eric Bana as a noble Hector is the only truly compelling character of Peterson's epic motion picture… Not even his courage was enough to restrain the savage anger of his egotistic adversary… But his tormented loyalty to his country and to his family is to admire and contemplate… Hector is happily married, and he has just become father of a little son and would actually like to rest a little bit and enjoy his family… Orlando Bloom is lost as Paris, the prince and the lover… His passion has no limit… He is a free spirit with a love to beauty despite his admirable drive to pursue his dreams no matter the odds… Helen Diane Kruger escapes back to Troy and gives the tyrant Agamemnon Brian Cox the excuse he needs to reach the beaches of the city… She is the beautiful face of the odious Menelaus Brendan Gleeson who swore not to rest till he destroy Troy once and for all… Achilles Brad Pitt makes a more human lover than a mighty warrior… He only fights when motivated but beware when he is furious and outraged… His hatred for the malevolent conqueror Agamemnon is deliciously to look at and consider… Rose Byrbe Briseis , a priestess and cousin to Hector, is moving in her willing to give up everything as long as her deadly Greek warrior lives… Odysseus Sean Bean provides the Greeks enough soldiers to conquer Troy with terrible consequences…

Achilles and his men are in their boat, on the verge of reaching the beach of Troy. Achilles makes a brief statement to his number two to fight for him. I think Pitt's intent was to make Achilles super-casual in moments like these, when everyone else is tensed up. But it just doesn't work; his line reading reminds me of an office manager asking his assistant to buy some more paper clips. However, there's something to be said for the view that Pitt was born to play this role. There's no getting around the fact that, physically, he is ideal. And, there aren't too many actors, whether thru presence or sheer egomania, who can stare down an entire army and make them feel small. The film, as a whole, is filled with such moments and it's a compulsive re-watching experience, not for the obvious 1000 ships sailing in, but for seeing mythical characters come alive and interact on screen for you. And for, oh yes, seeing Achilles down a giant warrior now & then. Now, as for GOOD line readings, I must mention the actor who impressed me the most - Brian Cox as Agamemnon, the 'pig of a king.' His performance was flawless and his was as a magnetic presence in some ways, more so as Pitt's Achilles. The actor Bana was excellent as the strong, heroic Hector and Gleeson great as the brutish King Menelaus. Sean Bean seems well suited for these epics and is very smooth as the legendary Odysseus. O'Toole brought in his usual class as the elderly King Priam. I've missed the Epic; I'm glad it's back.