A really excellent film -- from a certain point of view

Rating: 9/10 (23 May 2004)

That point of view is this: forget what the credits say about the Iliad being the inspiration for Troy.
Instead, consider Troy to be the inspiration for the Iliad.
Pretend that Troy is the real, what-actually-happened story, which was then modified and enhanced through hundreds of years of oral storytelling in a culture in which people believed that the gods routinely interact with mortals and intervene in their lives. And then think about how and why changes might have been made in the story over the centuries. One example of this has been completed for you by the filmmakers. They have explicitly spelled out how the legend got started that Achilles was a near-immortal who could only be killed by a shot to the heel. Here are some other things to consider in the same vein:
Do you think that people might have come up with an intervention by a god to explain Paris's survival after his defeat by Menelaus because this made more sense to them than the idea that Hector could commit a shockingly dishonorable act? Do you think that people might have "forgotten" that Briseis was a virgin priestess and member of the Trojan royal family because of the potentially embarrassing ease with which she gave up her virginity to Achilles? Do you think that people might have come up with a convoluted backstory for Paris, rumors of extreme beauty for Helen, and legends of an extraordinary love between the two of them simply because they hated the irony of having such a devastating war being started by an impulsive sexual fling between an immature guy and an unhappy woman?
I think that Troy works surprisingly well from this sort of perspective. I looked at Troy this way and found the story fascinating. I also found most of the characters to be very real and compelling, especially Hector, Odysseus, Paris, and Helen (yes, Helen). If you try my backwards view of Troy, you might have a similarly positive reaction.