Troy Movie Review

Director Wolfgang Petersen's Troy is not a movie for the ages, but it is a sturdy attempt at one. The filmmakers have done a fine job of whipping their source material into something that a modern audience could relate to, and casting actors to breathe life into their legendary characters. They've taken an epic, tragic tale and turned it into an epic, damn-shame tale which is, in itself, something of a damn-shame. It's still quite a spectacle, however, backed by a smart screenplay and enough moments of reflection and beauty to warrant attendance, particularly as this is a movie that should be seen on a big screen.

The whole bunch should be lauded for not making complete asses of themselves, which when grappling with something like Homer's "Illiad" one stands more than a passing chance of doing. They could have done a straight read and had Ares, Apollo, and Aphrodite interceding on the battlefield (someone had to learn from Clash of the Titans) and they were wise enough to have largely kept all of the sex and violence. They've also kept the noble sentiment, though they've eschewed reverence for the gods with a kind of "carpe diem or die" attitude.

The reason for all the killing and dying is the love of Helen (Diane Kruger)--wife of Menelaus (Brendan Gleason)--for Paris (Orlando Bloom). Paris spirits Helen away in the night, much to the dismay of his older brother, Hector (Eric Bana), as the act is apt to incite a war. Still, he's family so Hector helps the lovers get across the Aegean to Troy, ruled over by his father Priam (Peter O'Toole). Back in Greece Menelaus enlists the aid of his power-mad brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox) and they get their loose alliance of states to sail after them and attack the walled city.

Once there Agamemnon knows that the only warrior that can bring him victory is Achilles (Brad Pitt). Achilles quickly takes the Troy beaches and goes on to sack the temple of Apollo. He takes as booty a virgin priestess, Briseis (Rose Byrn, rather liked her), who, unbeknownst to him, is also the cousin of Hector and Paris. Achilles is also upset with Agamemnon and decides to sit the battle out until the ruler begs for him to rejoin the fighting. Meanwhile the bodies and blood-revenge oaths begin to stack up.

Dying is such a frequent topic in Troy that it's a part of the problem adaptating Homer's classic. We're so essentially, personally estranged from the typical short, brutal life of an ancient. When they talk of killing a man, it's no idle threat. When they talk about dying, it's in deadly earnest. Most of the men in Troy have killed men with their own hands, staring into their faces as they did it. Most of them have laid out their loved ones and lit a pyre. It never quite sinks in, though it's oft repeated, that most of these people are running headlong into death.

That's not for lack of trying. The fight choreography is so startling, so good (exciting and visceral), it's noticeable. The ultimate fight, between Hector and Achilles is stirring. The initial fight, between Menelaus and Paris, has a vicious quality. Petersen knows how to direct action.

He's also done a fine job manipulating his actors across this landscape. Pitt doesn't have the commanding presence one wishes for but again, not for lack of trying. It's his voice, that still sounds like a student at a protest rally rather than the scourge of men, but he does other things that make up for it. One scene, where he dismissively flicks water at his new-found love Briseis, sums Achilles petulant, egomaniacal nature up nicely. Does he look too damn good? Yes, there are several moments when that golden mane of his starts to upstage him. Bana, who really and truly deserves to be a huge star, leaves the hectoring out of Hector's character but he does represent him well as the one complete individual in this story. Bloom also fills out his role as the immature and rash Paris. Since they've removed all the Olympian intervention (wherein Paris was just a tool for their designs) his character becomes much weaker and easier to despise; it's to his credit (how many young actors would try to play, or could play "guileless") that you don't.

Huge kudos should be handed out to screenwriter David Benioff, who has crafted some fine lines and let them issue from various individuals instead of investing them all in one or two characters. After Achilles discusses the fleeting beauty of life and glory Briseis replies, "You're not a dumb brute. I could have forgiven a dumb brute." Benioff and the rest also have telescoped the ten-year siege (I never did buy that) into something like a few weeks (Briseis's cuts heals up during this time, though they still look recent).

There are of course, points of the movie that don't succeed as well. Special effects studios continue to insist on quantity and the sailing of a thousand ships looks like the advancing columns from the video game, "Space Invaders." The Greeks were such good sailors they were able to conform to vectors when charting courses. So fakey is this particular scene that while watching Peter O'Toole's reaction to same one can't help but think about Petersen somewhere off-stage shouting directions, "Der's more wessels than you've ever seen, Peter!"

One last thing: Sean Bean is a mature, manly, and bright as Odysseus and I'm hoping they relax the "no fantasy elements" if they ever decide to make Homer's sequel, "The Odyssey." I'm looking forward to Bean facing off against a full-sized mythological Cyclops.