|
|
  
Back Shelf Beauties
|
Troy People who have read the original tell me this story is loosely based on Homer's The Illiad, but I must have missed that day in high school because it's all Greek to me (That will forever be known as Willie Waffle's Worst Pun Ever). I should have bought a copy of Greek Mythology for Dummies just to help me pronounce the names, but the movie is pretty good. Set in ancient Grecian times, Brad Pitt (along with 30 pounds of new muscle and an outfit Jennifer will ask him to bring home and wear around the pool) stars as Achilles - the greatest warrior in the world who, according to legend, cannot be killed. While he is a great and celebrated fighter, Achilles bristles at doing the dirty work for his king, Agamemnon (Brian Cox) - a lazy, dishonorable, greedy, cowardly ruler who builds his kingdom on the blood of others (also known as the world's first CEO). Agamemnon wants to expand his kingdom, and his power, to include the land of Troy, and gets his chance when Troy's Prince Paris (Orlando Bloom) has an affair with the Queen of Sparta, Helen (Diane Kruger), who happens to be the wife of Agamemnon's brother, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson). Helen and Paris sneak off to Troy, while Agamemnon, Menalaus and his army of 1000 ships sail to Troy to get her back, but more importantly, conquer the neighboring land. Will Troy fall to Agamemnon and his army? Will Achilles lead the battle? Troy is an exciting movie full of more intrigue, drama, betrayals, affairs and shirtless hunky guys than The OC. While some of you might be scared off because it's based on an ancient Greek poem by a Homer other than Simpson, Troy is a typical soap opera with more action and a bigger budget. Writer David Benioff does a very good job at condensing the material to stretch over the course of a few weeks, as opposed to The Illiad's timetable of many years, without making the action and events feel rushed and unbelievable. He also provides some great dialogue at key moments, like Achilles meeting with Troy's King (Peter O'Toole) and his showdown with Hector (Eric Bana), which is a nice blend of action, drama and dialogue that perked up my ears. Director Wolfgang Petersen does a great job fashioning the movie as a series of interlocking and important fights and showdowns on different scales. From the one-on-one battles of Achilles against his foes to the thousand ships sailing into Troy to the tens of thousands of troops descending on the impenetrable city, Petersen captures the excitement, brutality, hate and passion whether it's between many or a few. And for the ladies, he throws in plenty of close-ups of Pitt looking plaintively into the horizon, urging the men into battle, or his WWE Wrestling-like fighting moves. While Petersen might overdo it with the close-ups, Pitt is the star and that's what the people want. Along with Pitt, the audience is treated to a collection of very good acting performances from actors of differing superstar value. Most people will recognize Eric "The Hulk" Bana, Brad Pitt and Orlando "Lord of the Rings" Bloom, but some of the best performances come from the older actors in Troy. Cox is a wonderful Agamemnon who mixes evil, bravado, cowardliness and greed into a potent, memorable character that stands as a great contrast to populist hero Achilles and the benevolent, statesman-like King of Troy put forth by the great actor Peter O'Toole (I'm glad to find out that he is still alive). Cox makes the audience loathe him, which is perfect and makes the battle of wills between Agamemnon and Achilles more interesting and understandable for us (if you had a boss like this, you'd want to quit too). O'Toole embodies the word regal, but he also brings some heart and depth to the character as bad things happen to his family. Bana was great as the honorable older brother, Prince Hector, who always wants to do the right thing, even in the face of loss and danger (especially in his big scene), while Bloom, like anything named Paris, is perfectly wimpy with vanity and impulse exceeding honor and integrity (Don't send me any angry e-mails. I'm not saying he's a wimp, he just plays the part well. He's an actor doing a good job). I'll even say that Pitt does a good job as the reflective, brooding hero. While he doesn't show much emotional difference between the brooding scenes and the love scenes, you have to remember that he is playing a man who is dying inside, and wants to physically die as well. His challenge is a physical one full of intense hand-to-hand fighting, wrestling and swordplay more than an acting challenge. The muscles paid off, and I think he might have waxed his legs, so he looked good in the skirt (maybe it was Nair). Troy is a massive epic that doesn't get boring, even though it is almost 3 hours long. Luckily, the movie has plenty of story and sub-plots that get better as the film progresses and keeps you interested until the end. 3 Waffles (Out Of 4) Quick Note on Willie Waffle Movie Reviewing Philosophy - I can hear plenty of you screaming because I didn't read The Illiad before reviewing this movie, and I don't compare it to Troy. I'll leave that to those with their Masters Degree in Greek Mythology or English. As far as I am concerned, you can't compare literature to movies. They are different mediums with different goals and different ways to tell their stories. You can't pack everything from a book into a movie, so the director and writer need to find the story that can be told visually within 2 - 3 hours. To condemn Petersen for leaving out the Greek Gods or some sub-plot is not fair. His job is to set up the characters and story within the framework of THIS MOVIE, and convince us that he has told the story, explained the character's actions and entertained us. Copyright 2004 - WaffleMovies.com |
