When Paris of Troy abducts the beautiful Helen, wife of Spartan King Menelaus, the trojan war begins.
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Strong and Moving!
Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.
it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.
The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;
Unlike the epic TROY, which spent much time and money recreating the spectacle of the Trojan War with CGI, the emphasis here is on the political ambitions and prophecies leading up to the start of the siege of Troy. Rufus Sewell as Agamemnon gives a performance (as the man who would conquer Troy) which eerily evokes Oliver Reed at his sinister best, as he makes it clear that the romance of Helen and Paris was merely a convenient excuse for the events that followed, and that the war came out of his own thirst for conquest. Sienna Guillory is attractive as Helen, but her role is rapidly reduced to that of a bystander in the great events that swirled around her. And the film makes clear its logic about this: how could a woman be responsible for a war in a time when even princesses were chattels of the royal houses to be auctioned off in marriage for political gain? As it deals more intimately with its characters and looks more closely at social power structures and gender roles of the period, this film is much more interesting as a human drama than the rather empty spectacle TROY.
This is the most inaccurate film on the Trojan war. Achilles and Agamemnon were never on the same page. This movie makes it seem as if they were friends when they really hated each other. In the real story there was never a conversation between Paris and Menalaus. Achilles was shot in the heel when Troy was burned. Furthermore the whole Trojan war was about the glorification of Achilles this movie barely mentions Achilles. This is the worst version of The Illiad ever told, for accuracy watch Troy. In Troy it truly makes you feel as if you are reading The Illiad this movie does such a bad job that Homer is probably turning in his grave as we speak. Don't watch this movie it is horrendous and a joke of the true story.
The film Helen of Troy, produced by Ted Kurdyla, is a tragic movie inspired by one of the greatest epic stories of all time, Homer's The Iliad. Released in 2003, the 2 hours and 57 minute film depicts the legendary battle between the Greeks and the Trojans over love, wealth and honor. It all began when the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, fell in love with Paris the son of King Priam of Troy. Though married to King Menelaus of Sparta, she left him and went with Paris to Troy. Grieved by the departure of Helen, he asked help from his brother Agamemnon who led the Spartan army to attack Troy. For 10 years the Greeks and the Trojans battled. Wearied by the battle, the Greeks decided to make a gigantic wooden horse to enter the city and defeated the Trojans, thus ended the war. Menelaus narrates the story as he reminisces the events that took place. It was very effective because he was a witness to both Agamemnon's intent to sack Troy's city and Helen's love for Paris. If someone else told the story, chances are, it will be one-sided. Like, if it was Helen, it would probably be focused on her love story. Or, if it was Agamemnon, it will be about the gory encounter with the Trojans.John Kent Harrison, the director of Helen of Troy, was able to bring into life The Iliad. The actors and actresses gave justice to the roles they played. Although there were scenes where it was very obvious that the background was only a painting, the movie redeemed itself with the help of its lighting, sound effects, and script. These elements contributed to the effectiveness of the production because the audience felt that they were part and parcel of the whole. For this and its historical value, it deserves 5 stars.
The film "Helen of Troy" is based on the fictional epic novel, "The Iliad", which has been viewed by many to be the greatest war story ever told. It begins with Paris, a young Trojan Prince who was visited by three goddesses asking him to decide on who of them was the fairest. He chose Aphrodite, the goddess of Love and Beauty, when she offered to make the most beautiful woman in the Aegean fall in love with him. She showed him Helen, and from then on, Paris and Helen were destined to meet. Some time later, the Prince was sent by his father, King Priam of Troy, to make peace with the Greeks. Helen was married to King Menelaus of Sparta then, but that didn't stop her from sailing away with the man she truly loved. That started the war between the Trojans and the Greeks, and it lasted even longer because of the men's selfish pride. Agamemnon, Menelaus' older brother, was High Chief of the Greeks and also the most ruthless. In the end, his wife Clytemnestra killed him for causing her sister, Helen, so much pain.I really enjoyed the movie and I found the scenes highly interesting. But even then, once compared to the modern film "TROY", it does not excel much in the battle scenes. For me this is understandable considering the low efficiency of productions during that time as opposed to the outstanding technology we have now. The acting was also commendable, but still also with less emotion than of the actors in "TROY". I think that over-all, the film was good and it covered all the details that were necessary to maintain the quality of the book. Out of a rating of 5 to 1, 1 being the highest, I would give "Helen of Troy" a 2. This is not only because of the great entertainment and information it provided me but also because that's the rating it deserves.