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Troy
I was real excited when I first heard about this move. I love the Greek epics and the Iliad is right up there for me. This movie had a great cast, beautiful trailers and enticing gossip about its production mishaps. Once it came out though, only a steady stream of negative feedback reached my eyes and ears. What the hell, internet people? I loved this movie.
Troy stars Brad Pitt as the Prima Donna Achilles. He is as deadly as he is beautiful. Brian Cox is the biggest pain in Achilles' heel, the great king Agamemnon. Orlando Bloom is the pretty bow-wielding Paris of Troy and Eric Bana plays his bad ass brother, Hector the Protector, Prince of Troy and my favorite character by far in the movie. Sean Bean appears as Odysseus but his role is so damn minor. Oh, and Peter O'Toole played King Priam. O'Toole is one of those guys that I have assumed died at some random point over the past 15 years. The dude is still kicking. Wolfgang Petersen of Das Boot directed this epic swords and sand flick.
I do not wish to go over a plot synopsis. I mean, I can, but the thought of a reader that has no idea of what Troy is already about, well, that saddens me. Ok, girding my loins like Hector did prior to facing off against Achilles. Troy is the story of two empires colliding and the men that surge up to the surface or get crushed utterly in the maelstrom of this conflict. Homer tells us that the Trojan War started because of an unfaithful wife, Helen, running off with handsome but not so bright, Paris. This movie sticks with that basic frame story, but adds real life rationale for the war such as Agamemnon being a greedy prick. Anyhoo, war starts, Achilles kills, sulks, kills some more and Hector stays a total awesome guy throughout.
Now, as to why I liked it. Ok, Troy looked great. The use of CG was understated and I only caught it noticeably in the scene with the Greek ships making towards the soon to be torched Troy. The fight scenes were really pretty damn good, even if Achilles' bouts got somewhat repetitive.
For a movie about one of the most massive/greatest wars ever, it didn't rely on battles alone to carry it along. There was a fair amount of character development. Sure, it wasn't all that subtle, but it worked more than well enough. The cinematography was quite alluring, though I would have preferred to see more of the Trojan countryside. I am not sure what the place was like back then but somehow I do not think so many men would have taken up swords over a semi-arid coastal kingdom.
So, the too long; didn't read version of my Troy review. I really liked the movie, the main actors were good and none of them were distracting from the rest of the movie and the cinematography worked well, although it wasn't innovative or anything. If you like watching near naked men hack away at each other with various objects, then check this one out, like slowly all up and down.
3.6 / 4.0
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