Reviews: Hits and MissesHave you read a book you’d like to share with your neighbours? Do you have an opinion about a new movie that you just can’t keep to yourself? Are you looking for feedback on a CD before you decide to buy – or have you just heard the greatest new tune and you want to let everyone know about it? Well this is the place to express your thoughts on music, movies, theatre, books – whatever you’d like to review – and to find out what your neighbours think about what they are watching, listening to and reading.
TROYThe first thing that you have to remember when going to see this recent box-office-hero is that the movie TROY is...well…a movie. Based on a story that is supposed to have taken place over a ten year span, you cannot enter the theatre expecting to see ten years condensed into one movie—even if it is three hours long. For all intents and purposes TROY is a re-telling of an age-old story…adapted for film.
After studying The Iliad, The Odyssey and The Aeneid on multiple occasions, I was curious how this film could possibly hope to do any sort of justice to a story of such...er…epic proportions. I hadn’t, however, considered the film-maker’s secret weapons—Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom, and Eric Bana. With such a star-packed cast, I worried that the characterization of “people” I’d been studying for years would fall short of my expectations. The final verdict? For the most part I thought the casting was excellently done.
Brad Pitt—pretty much the only actor who could pull off the roll of Achilles without falling short in the viewers’ estimation of the fastest, strongest most deadly man ever… with an ego to match. Brad stayed true to form throughout the film (he plays a convincing demi-God…)
Orlando Bloom—Paris is supposed to be beautiful, arrogant, self absorbed and slightly effeminate. They managed to make Mr. Bloom all of the above. Orlando played a convincingly clueless younger brother to the far more earthly Hector.
Eric Bana—by far one of the highlights of the film. He pulls off the noble, honourable, destined-to-die, persona of the good Hector to a T.
As far as changes to the “story line” go, don’t get me started. In the interests of cinema, changes were necessary. However, it was interesting how a few little details were included—Achilles’ body is found with only one arrow remaining in it; in the heel. According to the Iliad it was one arrow to this point of weakness that kills the demi-god. Odysseus, while lighting a funeral pyre says to let it be known that he “walked among giants”. All of the epics describe the heroes of these stories as absolutely enormous—a detail that was addressed but not over done in the film.
Finally, the relationship between Achilles and Briseis was expanded on and developed beyond any thing even implied in any of the stories. However, I felt that it was well done and allowed for some insight into Achilles’ character.
In summary, the movie TROY is a cinematic spectacle that the battle scenes alone make worth while. For those of you who have studied the epics—don’t worry too much about accuracy. The story has definitely been changed to fit the media of film. Regardless of your background knowledge in the subject, the story of Troy is one that will continue to last the ages; it is breathtaking in all of its forms. | 
