Troy Raises The Bar to Epic Levels

Rating: 8/10 (15 May 2004)

Troy has gotten a lot of grief from critics. They say that it does not do Homer justice. But how can anything? And besides, the average movie goer has probably not even read Homer (myself included). There may have been that World History class you took way back when but that probably slipped most people's minds, too. Remember when the Lord of the Rings fans threw a fit because they said no one could adapt the books properly? Well, they shut up pretty fast. Now, this is no Lord of the Rings, but it is not a CGI fest that disappoints.
For the first half of Troy, there is more nudity than blood. The epic battles and all their blood shed do eventually show up but the nudity never really fades into the background. Actually, the nudity is more authentic than the blood. You would think a movie about "the greatest war there ever was" would invest in more than watered down food coloring. Especially because they do more than a couple close up shots of their battered soldiers.
The acting is much better than expected. All the actors do a good job with the genre they are a part of. Peter O'Tool is the scene stealer. He gives an excellent performance that should be remembered come Oscar season. Eric Bana quickly sheds The Hulk (thank god) and gives possibly the best performance of his career. Orlando Bloom shows that he is growing up with his roles. He does not play the strong, emotionally put together hero, but the pretty boy who struggles with the knowledge that he is just that and nothing more. Another best of their career performance. Brad Pitt is good to look at but falls in the shadows of his fellow cast mates. This is not all his fault though. He is given the most physical of all the roles and he does this well. Though he does have a character arc, it is not as visible as Bloom's. Sean Bean, another LOTR veteran, takes on the role of Odysseus. He does the part solidly and is not at all Bormoir.
If this is a preview of what the summer is to be then I can't wait. Troy has raised the bar above the crap that studios got away with last summer. It is worth the time and the money. ***/****