A terrible disappointment (some spoilers)

Rating: 3/10 (16 June 2004)

Apart from his excellent turn in "Twelve Monkeys", I've never rated Brad Pitt as much of an actor and his reliably terrible performance in "Troy" bears much of the blame for this movie's weak impact. But I did hope the presence of such stalwarts as Brendan Gleeson, Brian Cox and Peter O'Toole might give us something to hang on to. The task, however, proved beyond them.
What we're left with is a story where the inability of one prince (Paris, played in dreadfully limp, self-righteous fashion by Orlando Bloom) to keep his hormones under control leads to an avoidable war, thousands of deaths and the destruction of a city and its culture. The rather murkily presented spectacle of a thousand ships taking to sea on a quest for revenge forms little more than background to some massive egos and the actual fall of the city is presented almost as an afterthought. The music is eminently forgettable.
To give what little credit is due, Peter O'Toole does turn in a strong and sympathetic performance as King Priam, while Sean Bean is credible, even interesting, in the role of Odysseus. Their efforts, however, are not enough to save the film.
It would have been more honest to call the movie "Achilles" and have done with it. If you must see this one, wait until it comes out on rental.
Rating: 3/10