Glad I Wasn't a Woman in 3200 B.C.

Rating: Null/10 (19 May 2004)

Troy was aiming to deliver an "epic" war movie and it basically succeeded. Epic in scope, grand in vision, full of appropriate CGI to give the impression of vastness...in all these things it did a good job. Not a great job mind you, but a good job. Enough to give it a solid 7/10. I agree with many of the critics that did not feel emotionally involved - at times you felt like you were being "read" a good story rather than experiencing one. My "enjoyment" rating was a solid 7/10 for much of the movie and I thought it would end up there but there were a number of scenes that had my stomach in a knot. My rule of thumb is that any movie that can get my stomach in a knot or have me on the edge of my seat more than once, assuming that it doesn't screw up in any significant way in other areas, must receive more than a 7/10 on the enjoyment scale. Hence the 8. Let's call it a soft 8.
One last comment, Brad Pitt, whom I think is an excellent actor, was both a hit and a miss in his role. I am convinced based on his portrayal of Achilles that he is not suited for the "old English" style of speech. He never fully inhabited his dialog, it wasn't convincing. I wished he'd have employed the Mel Gibson method of Shakespearean acting (circa Hamlet 1990) and delivered his lines with his own natural inflection, it would have come across far more believable.