Great film. Sean Bean is memorable over all!

Rating: 9/10 (14 May 2004)

I really did enjoy this movie. Great epic battle scenes and the CGI effects are virtually seamless. Plus, I really liked how the plot focused more on the individuals participating in the war (and what the war was really about) than on the stale love story between Paris and Helen. I think the movie leaned a little heavily on fight choreography and seemed somewhat in a rush to finish after the first 2 hours, but what really did it for me were certain performances by a very talented cast.
Sean Bean. In my opinion, his role and performance of it was probably the most influential and strongest of anyone. Sort of a hidden strength within the movie which has placed a lot of its mystique on the shoulders of Brad Pitt, Eric Bana and Orlando Bloom. Sean is the unforeseen jewel in this picture. His performance was flawless and left you wanting more. Just when you thought he couldn't do better than Boromir in "LOTR" he blows it away with Odysseus.
Hollywood better take notice. Sean is an actor to be reckoned with and Warner Bros. would have done well to publicize him more than they did. Every role he's performed has hit the mark and this is absolutely no exception.
A sequel ("The Odyssey") starring Sean Bean should be done. I can't say it more simply than that. WE WANT "THE ODYSSEY!" And we want it with Sean Bean.
Impressive performances were also turned in by Pitt and Bana. I've been a Pitt fan for years and this role really showed a diverse talent we didn't know was there. I haven't loved him this much in a movie since "Fight Club." And Bana was nothing short of fantastic. He has a new fan right here. It's a toss-up between Hector and Achilles as to who the true protagonist of the movie was. They made it very hard to choose sides. I don't think I ever did!
Orlando Bloom. For all the publicity he got, he wasn't in it half as much as I expected. They painted Paris as neither heroic nor honorable (and he really wasn't, if you think about it) and I think Orlando pulled this depiction off wonderfully. It's nice to see him as something other than a valiant, invincible hero. "Troy" lets you see that there is likely a massive range in his acting abilities and I can't wait to see him in more roles that differ from his norm.
I can't give "Troy" four stars with a clear conscience. One movie can only ever have four stars from me from now on and that's "Return of the King." And a "Return of the King" this was not. But it's definitely a "must-see" for any movie-goer.