My $10.25 Worth
In Homer's the Iliad, the gods play a major role in how the mortals live out their lives. The book's characters are predisposed to the assumption that their lives are a consequence of 'divine-intervention'. And remarkably so, it is interpreted that Apollo favors the Trojans and Athena, the Achaeans.
In the movie Troy, however, the relationship between the central characters and the Greek gods are shallow, making the Trojans seem mere iconoclastics. If you hadn't read the Iliad, you wouldn't have known that Achille's mother Thetis was a goddess. And because it had been prophesize that she would give birth to a child mightier than her father, Zeus who was in love with her decided to present her as a bride to a mortal. And that Achilles is born a mortal but after his mother dipped him in the river Styx he becomes a half-god. Paris had intentionally speared him on his heel because it was known that his mother had hang onto him on this heel when he was immersed in the river, and that this remained mortal. And yet the arrow in his heel didn't seem to have killed him neither. It looks like he died more of a broken heart and the wounds he sustained from Paris' spear on the other parts of his body. That could have been the movie's Achille's heel for me.
After a spectacular movie adaptation of 'Lord of the Rings', I had hoped that Troy would also capture the awesome moments from Homer's book projected to the screen. For example, of how Mighty Aphrodite protected Paris from Menelaus in their battle scene.
...He (Menelaus) charged back with his bronze spear, intent on killing Alexander. But Aphrodite had snatched Paris up — for a good an easy feat—concealed him in a heavy mist, and placed him in his own sweetly scented bedroom.
I mean, if Gollum became the most memorable character in 'Lord of the Rings'(for me anyway), I had hoped that the Greek gods, in all their glory would have made 'Troy' a perfect cinematic achievement of breathing life into a literary classic.
The impact of some of the most touching scenes in the book are also lost or dissipated in the movie. King Priam of Troy's poignant moment with Achilles to retrieve Hector's body should invoke from the fierce warrior an emotional reminiscing of his own father. The reaction of Brad Bitt's character to the king's humility is confusing to one who is not familiar with the book. He seemed sulking and sniffing and you wonder if it is because he is tired of the savagery of the life he has chosen to immortalize his name or if he is constipated.
I guess that I had been expecting too much as Wolfgang Peterson is NOT Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings producer and director). It becomes a waste then that such a masterpiece would fall into the realms of mediocrity. It should be a crime, actually.
Brad Pitt's beautiful profile makes the $10.25 I paid to see 'Troy' hardly a redemption. And add the cost of the copy of Iliad I had to buy to refresh my memory on the book, I think this ranting will go on for a few more blogs entries.
In the movie Troy, however, the relationship between the central characters and the Greek gods are shallow, making the Trojans seem mere iconoclastics. If you hadn't read the Iliad, you wouldn't have known that Achille's mother Thetis was a goddess. And because it had been prophesize that she would give birth to a child mightier than her father, Zeus who was in love with her decided to present her as a bride to a mortal. And that Achilles is born a mortal but after his mother dipped him in the river Styx he becomes a half-god. Paris had intentionally speared him on his heel because it was known that his mother had hang onto him on this heel when he was immersed in the river, and that this remained mortal. And yet the arrow in his heel didn't seem to have killed him neither. It looks like he died more of a broken heart and the wounds he sustained from Paris' spear on the other parts of his body. That could have been the movie's Achille's heel for me.
After a spectacular movie adaptation of 'Lord of the Rings', I had hoped that Troy would also capture the awesome moments from Homer's book projected to the screen. For example, of how Mighty Aphrodite protected Paris from Menelaus in their battle scene.
...He (Menelaus) charged back with his bronze spear, intent on killing Alexander. But Aphrodite had snatched Paris up — for a good an easy feat—concealed him in a heavy mist, and placed him in his own sweetly scented bedroom.
I mean, if Gollum became the most memorable character in 'Lord of the Rings'(for me anyway), I had hoped that the Greek gods, in all their glory would have made 'Troy' a perfect cinematic achievement of breathing life into a literary classic.
The impact of some of the most touching scenes in the book are also lost or dissipated in the movie. King Priam of Troy's poignant moment with Achilles to retrieve Hector's body should invoke from the fierce warrior an emotional reminiscing of his own father. The reaction of Brad Bitt's character to the king's humility is confusing to one who is not familiar with the book. He seemed sulking and sniffing and you wonder if it is because he is tired of the savagery of the life he has chosen to immortalize his name or if he is constipated.
I guess that I had been expecting too much as Wolfgang Peterson is NOT Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings producer and director). It becomes a waste then that such a masterpiece would fall into the realms of mediocrity. It should be a crime, actually.
Brad Pitt's beautiful profile makes the $10.25 I paid to see 'Troy' hardly a redemption. And add the cost of the copy of Iliad I had to buy to refresh my memory on the book, I think this ranting will go on for a few more blogs entries.