Review: With Brad Pitt at the Helm, ‘Troy’ is One of the More Enjoyable Mythology-to-Screen Adaptations

“Troy” is the type of movie action lovers will revel in, as will lovers of period films. The film took an astounding $175M to make, and celebrates costume design, ferocious battle scenes, and good acting all around. Detailing gigantic heroes, enemies, and Gods, the film handles the material well, and doesn’t drag despite its 2 hour and 43 minute runtime. Unlike less pleasing films, such “Clash of the Titans” or “Hercules,” “Troy,” while speeding through Homer’s “The Illiad,” is still watchable and fun throughout. 

“Troy” features an A-list cast, helmed by Brad Pitt, who plays the tortured hero Achilles, but including Sean Bean, Diane Kruger, Rose Byrne, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Brian Cox, and Brendan Gleeson. The plot, in contrast, is simple: a beautiful woman, Helen of Sparta (Diane Kruger) is romanced away from her husband, King Menalaus (Gleeson), by the charming Paris, Prince of Troy (Bloom). Their romance sparks an epic battle, with Menalaus enlisting his tyrant brother Agamemnon (Cox) to lead a thousand ships against the City of Troy.

Brad Pitt Propels the Action Forward

“Troy” is at once an epic action film and an actor-driven film, Brad Pitt entrusted with carrying much of the film’s intrigue and heart. Pitt’s Achilles is the best soldier in all of Greece, is thought near invincible (being the son of a God and a mortal), though he is a huge thorn in Agamemnon’s side. Flaunting his own combat skill, while systematically dressing King Agamemnon down as a coward, is Achille’s M.O. for much of the film.

Pitt handles Achilles well. He creates a unique persona in the way Achilles thinks, acts, and, especially moves. Watching his battle scenes are a combination of murderous ferocity with a ballet dance. Pitt dances around his enemies and drops them with reckless abandon. He also despises the Gods, seen as he cleaves the head off of a golden Apollo statue. “Let me tell you a secret,” he preaches to a priestess (Rose Byrne). “The Gods envy us because we’re mortal.” I can see Achilles, part killer, part philosopher, falling apart in the hands of a lesser actor. But Pitt knows what he’s doing.

The other actors put in competent performances as well, and my favorites were Eric Bana, who plays the Trojan hero Hector, Byrne, mentioned above, and Bloom as young Paris. Bloom and Bana particularly have good chemistry — you honestly believe these two are brothers and the latter would move mountains to help the former. And for her part, Byrne adds a soft edge, and balances the movie’s bloody battles well. I also liked the Trojan King Priam (Peter O’Toole), who, alongside Pitt, creates one of the film’s most memorable scenes.

Choreography and Battles Elevate ‘Troy’ 

“Troy” choreographs its battles well, and they are likewise believably ferocious. Unlike some lighter epics, such as “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,” these battles are utterly serious. We know exactly what awaits men on the opposite end of each sword. There’s also not an overabundance of gore, thankfully, while there is an overabundance of death. The body count is high, but bodies fall amidst quick blows and mortal wounds. “Troy” is not a movie that celebrates torture and gross-out gore, and it suits the movie well.

The sound also matches the movie’s intensity. Clanging swords and deep, thunderous shields clashing line the proceedings and make us believe the might of these men.

“Troy” also throws in a lot of context, such as in the almost movie-long brawl between Achilles and Agamemnon, where the short-lived lives of soldiers are contrasted with the uncaring nature of the film’s despots. “Perhaps the Kings were too far behind to see,” Achilles taunts. “The soldiers won the battle.” Agamemnon’s spite of Achilles, and Achilles’ reaction to it, bolster the film and make it about more than the siege of the City of Troy.

‘Troy’ Drops the Mythology for Action

“Troy” is based off an epic work of literature, and feels like it, even though some elements are squeezed into days instead of years. There is also — aside from brief mentions of Gods and their intentions for the humans — barely any mythology element to the movie at all. This is an action movie through and through. But, unlike some actioners that use its cast for body count instead of depth, in “Troy,” we thankfully care about what happens to its chief characters. This is no more evident than in its historic Hector vs. Achilles battle, though readers of Homer’s novel already know how this plays out.

At the end of the day, “Troy” is a good movie. It’s entertaining, has pleasing action, acting, and its set design is second to none. If you can enjoy that, you should find “Troy” pleasing. However, if you’re looking for a faithful adaptation to Homer’s poem, you’ll probably be disappointed.