a great, enjoyable film

Rating: 8/10 (15 March 2005)

i've waited quite a while, before I decided to watch this movie. this was due to some bad reviews, which kept me hesitating. today, I really was in the mood to give it a try, and me being a fan of epics such as "braveheart" , I thought I at least couldn't do too much wrong. I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw.
Yes, it may not be too close to the material it was INSPIRED by, but that's what's being inspired is all about, isn't it? It didn't claim to be historical accurate. Speaking of that, there could never be a historical correct movie about troy, as we rely on very vague, almost prose-like information.
I must admit, that I'm not deeply familiar with the material, this film builds up on. But you know what? I'm kind of glad about that. With me being disconnected, I enjoyed every second of this wonderfully crafted movie. I enjoyed the fighting scenes, even so some of them were cut pretty fast, letting you guess the action. I loved the dialogs, despite of them sometimes being a bit cheesy. It simply fit the characters, the time and the atmosphere. The acting was breath-taking at times. Peter O'Toole is a genius, Brad Pitt was cast perfectly as well as Sean Bean. Brian Cox gave a superb villain ( yes I know, it's unfair that Agamemnon was portrayed as an evil conquerer). Yes, Orlando Bloom probably isn't the best actor out there, but his performance was at least mediocre. It for sure couldn't ruin the overall impression concerning this movies acting.
I usually don't write reviews ( as you may have guessed by now :) ), especially not in English, but in this case I had to make an exception, given some of the bad reviews I read on IMDb before.
Something I enjoyed very much was the duality of emotions, I was confronted with. Excuse me, if this doesn't make any sense. I hope to clarify this in the following lines: I simply couldn't decide on who's side I should be on. It's hard to define Achilles role, and this gives this movie an extra edge, in my point of view. Many people resented the fact, that the movie "created" a black and white image, having the noble Priam on the one, and the purely evil Agamemnon on the other hand. And I understand that. But somehow, in the end it really didn't bother me. I love villains :)
If you have a chance to watch this film, don't hesitate. Even if you may not be overwhelmed by it, you will at least not waste your time. Tha, I can assure you!