Troy

[Phantom]

Hoooboy, why is it Hollywood can't leave good stories alone? Not only is the movie an archaeological trainwreck, but someone suddenly decided that Homer had the story wrong! I can forgive the bad science behind it, but this last part is almost unforgivable

That said once I was able to separate this movie from anything related to the Iliad, I did have fun. The one shinning moment was the battle between Hector and Achilles, very well done.

I just hope it inspires people to read the Iliad itself.

A 5/10, only because of some of the performances and the above mentioned fight scene.

[REG]

I dunno. Is "The Iliad" the sole historical account of the real Trojan War? You know, the one without the mythological trappings?

[Phantom]

Originally posted by REG
I dunno. Is "The Iliad" the sole historical account of the real Trojan War? You know, the one without the mythological trappings?

Uhm, the movie was based, or at least supposed to be, on Homer's works, therefore it should have had the mythic trappings. Shall we actually bring archaeology into the mix here? I would be more then happy to open that box of ammo.

[REG]

Well, I've always wanted to know about the real Trojan War. What started it, historically? I mean, to be brutally honest, I don't believe it started with a beauty contest between two goddesses and one mortal.

[Cmdr Powers]

Actually it was three goddesses and a mortal.

But who's counting?

I greatly enjoyed the performances in Troy, especially Brad Pitt's. His energetic attacks seem right on.

One subtle bit was where Achilles is consulting with his mother. In the myth, Achilles' mother was a nymph. In the movie she's shown wading in the water, looking for shells to make a necklace for her son.

While I don't believe the gods' involvement actually occurred, Homer has the gods influencing every single event to some extent. Such a movie would be better done by Spielberg and Lucas. The earlier TV movie about the war was closer to the Iliad, but even there they minimized the involvement of the gods. Homer's version is practically X-men vs The Brotherhood of Evil with gods guiding spears and beaming heroes out before they can get hit, etc. In the movie Troy, the gods do influence everything, but they do it by virtue of the belief or lack thereof, of the various characters. You can feel the horror in some of the Myrmidons when Achilles beheads the statue of Apollo. The equivalent might be a soldier ripping down an icon of Christ in a Catholic church.

No, I have a much easier time believing Agamemnon using Helen's abduction/elopement as an excuse for attacking the richest city of the time. He would have done it one way or another, Helen or not.

The "historical" Trojan War seems to have been a long period (a decade?) of Viking-style raids in that area, culminating in a successful attack on Troy itself. Troy has been "destroyed" quite a few times due to its fortuitious (?) location on trade routes to the East.

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

Homer's version of the events isn't the only one. Plato makes allusion to the fact that Homer lied about certain events in the Iliad, either in the Phaedrus or the Republic. Plato also mentions at some point that Homer is blinded for his lies and recovers his sight at the Oracle. I'd have to look it up, but Homer's version isn't the only one. Its just the one best written.

[Kaiddin]

Originally posted by REG
Well, I've always wanted to know about the real Trojan War. What started it, historically? I mean, to be brutally honest, I don't believe it started with a beauty contest between two goddesses and one mortal.

Have you seen or read Wood's In Search of th e Trojan War ? At Amazon.

[Phantom]

Originally posted by REG
Well, I've always wanted to know about the real Trojan War. What started it, historically? I mean, to be brutally honest, I don't believe it started with a beauty contest between two goddesses and one mortal.

I would think any book on the Mycaenean period would probably have at least a mention of the War, depending on the author. Try doing a search for the excavations at Hisarlik lead by Manfred Korfman. Besides we shouldn't be mixing fact with fantasy, the movie was definetly the mythic Iliad.

I can get over the lack of the gods in the movie, though there were some scenes I was looking forward to seeing. But, my problem is the fundamental changes that were carried out for the movie. For example I think Agamemnon's death at the hands of Clytemnestra was a more fitting end for the king, then one he faced in the movie.

I like Wolfgang Peterson as a director, but in this case I think they should have gotten Peter Jackson, he was much more faithful to the LotRs ("best story of the 20th C.") then Peterson was to the Iliad (one of the best stories in the last 3000 years.) I can just hear my profs and classmates talking about this movie next Sept. when class starts again.

[Kaiddin]

Hollywood did the Odyssey a couple years ago. It starred George Clooney. At Amazon.

Actually this was closer to the original than most historic movies.

[Cmdr Powers]

Originally posted by Kaiddin
Actually this was closer to the original than most historic movies.

Man's got a point!

[Phantom]

Actually a few years back they did do a movie based on the Odyssey with Armand Asante, it was quite good.

[REG]

Phantom,

Okay, I know how disappointed you are that the film Troy is not a film adaptation of The Iliad by Homer, but put aside the mythological cra... err, stuff, is the film closer to the historical accounts of the Trojan War?

P.S. You're better off renting/buying the NBC mini-series that starred Armand Assante.

[Eric R.]

Nobody ever cliamed this WAS the Illiad, only that the story was inspired by it. In fact there was elements from all 3 Trojan War heroic epics: The Illiad, The Odyssey, and the Aneaid. As to why the producers just didn't say that I don't know I guess they must of thought people would recognize the Illiad better.

[Phantom]

Originally posted by Eric R.
Nobody ever cliamed this WAS the Illiad, only that the story was inspired by it. In fact there was elements from all 3 Trojan War heroic epics: The Illiad, The Odyssey, and the Aneaid. As to why the producers just didn't say that I don't know I guess they must of thought people would recognize the Illiad better.

Uhm, the stories you refer to are called the Nostoi (The Returns) and they branch off from the Iliad, so they are all interconnected. Greece went to war with Troy (Ilios), Odysseues was one of the kings that followed Agamememnon, the Odyessy is the story of his trip back to Ithica, etc. The movie, as stated in the credits, was inspired by Homer's Iliad. As a matter of fact the movie negates most of the Nostoi.

As to the question does it compare to the historical siege...? Uhm, no...Unless you believe characters like Achilles, Ajax, Castor and Pollux, and all the kings mentioned existed. Which there is no proof, except for a name that has been found at Hisarlik, Alexandros thought to be another name for Paris.

Was there a war? Probably. Certainly Troy VI does show signs of siege and destruction at about 1250 BC, but was it the Great 10 year siege of Homer, or as has been stated above, was it hit-and-run raids that finally brought the City to it's knees? I don't know. All I know is that Troy was a good sword-and-sandels movie, but I hope no one actually connects it with the real source material for the story.

[Dave Biggins]

A buddy of mine bought a DVD of the movie at the local bazaar. Average sound quality, skips a bit when played on a laptop, and some creep gets up for popcorn during a dramatic moment...

It was a fun movie. To keep myself sane, I always tell myself not to expect a completely faith adaptation of the literature. Eric Bana did a fine job as Hector.

For a damn fine perspective on ancient history, I always recommend "The Histories" by Herodotus.