Great spectacle, little emotion and humor

Rating: Null/10 (17 May 2004)

First of all, I will have problems commenting on the accuracy of the story. I already knew it had been much altered. However I did have vague memories and was able to guess what would be coming (Paris and the arrows...) I do however regret that the Gods were omitted. The film crew stated it would have been ridiculous. Hum, excuse me, but the armies are themselves a bit ridiculous are they not? As far as special effects and battle scene go, "Troy" is more spectacular than "Lord of the Rings". There are some visually beautiful scenes, especially the ones with fire in the second part of the movie which I found to be overall better than the first. Now to the cast... I do think Orlando Bloom is gorgeous, but he is quite pathetic in his range of expressions as an actor. I frown to mean the hour is grave, I stop frowning, I frown to mean I'm worried... I was laughing and so was half the audience... Brad Pitt is a little, well, inflated, with his big bulging biceps. He and his cousin Patroclus look like Venice Beach surfers awash on a foreign shore! The actresses I found to be good, as well as Eric Bana, credible as Hector, Sean Bean as Ulysses/Odysseus and Peter O'Toole, especially in his last scene. To put it briefly, "Troy" is a visually great show, the sets are breathtaking. However the film totally lacks subtlety, humor and emotion.