Monday, December 04, 2006

Iliad (Troy)- the best story of all times




Usually some brilliant indie movies are underrated underdawgs. However, some made-in-Hollywood movies with A-list actors can be underrated as well. Wolfgan Petersons' "TROY (2004)" is one of the examples.

I first read the story of "Iliad" when I was about 10 years old. It totally blew my mind away when I entered the world of the Trojan war where you could see the fights between Greek Gods, Godesses, superheroes and human beings. It was a breath-taking journey. The name of Achilles was like a tatoo on my childhood dream. A superhero who was a son of God Zeus and sea nymph Thetis -- how cool was that!



It's really risky to have Brad Pitt and the new heartthrob Orlando Boom in an epic film like "Troy." Beautiful actors are tricky assets in a movie project where the story is supposed to be the focus. Although it's painful to watch Orlando Boom saying his lines on the big screen, I am not denying Brad Pitt is a talented actor. However, Brad Pitt is not quite cut out for a legendary figure of ancient times. Fortunately, Eric Bana's performance was adorable and convincing.

Wolfgan Peterson removed the religious parts of the original story, and added more humanity to the movie. I think this is the right decision. The movie kept its decency in everything we look for in an epic film. However, this movie did not get as much attention as it deserved, partly because this is a story already being told millions of times; or maybe moviegoers are expecting to see a sandal-and-sword epic film passing the bar raised by "Gladiator."

The unforgettable fight between Achilles and Hector:


3 comments:

Rach said...

Troy is one of my favorite movies. This story brought me back to my first year in college...kind of interestin...got homesick at that time..haha…
Actually, I think Orlando Boom’s performance in Lord of the Rings impressed me most though he didn’t “talk” a lot in that movie...lol
“added more humanity to the movie...I guess...people like to watch love stories...watch others suffering in painful love ..and being eager to find the resolution ..salvation....

I also remembered the “drum” in the first fight…..that impressed me , too....(..this idea suddenly came into my mind...:P )

Hope I have chances to see the movie again..^^..

南瓜喵 (Moviecrackers) said...

cool comment :)

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