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Troy (2004) DVD Review
Troy (2004) DVD Credits:
Troy (2004) Directed by:
Wolfgang Petersen
Troy (2004) Written by:
David Benioff
Troy (2004) Cast:
Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean, Diane Kruger, Peter O'Toole, Brendan Gleeson, Rose Byrne, Brian Cox, Julie Christie, Saffron Burrows, Garrett Hedlund
Troy (2004) Released by:
Not available at this time
Region:
1
Troy (2004) DVD Release Date:
17th September 2007
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Troy (2004) Synopsis:

Throughout time, men have waged war. Some for power, some for glory, some for honor — and some for love. In ancient Greece, the passion of two of history's most legendary lovers, Paris, Prince of Troy (Bloom) and Helen (Kruger), Queen of Sparta, ignites a war that will devastate a civilization. When Paris steals Helen away from her husband, King Menelaus (Gleeson), it is an insult that cannot be suffered. Familial pride dictates that an affront to Menelaus is an affront to his brother Agamemnon (Cox), powerful King of the Myceneans, who soon unites all the massive tribes of Greece to steal Helen back from Troy in defense of his brother's honor. In truth, Agamemnon's pursuit of honor is corrupted by his overwhelming greed — he needs control of Troy to ensure the supremacy of his already vast empire. The walled city, under the leadership of King Prium (O'Toole) and defended by mighty Prince Hector (Bana), is a citadel that no army has been able to breach. One man alone stands as the key to victory or defeat over Troy — Achilles (Pitt), believed to be the greatest warrior alive. Arrogant, rebellious and seemingly invincible, Achilles has no allegiance to anyone or anything, save his own glory. It is his insatiable hunger for eternal renown that leads him to attack the gates of Troy under Agamemnon's banner — but it will be love that ultimately decides his fate. Two worlds will go to war for honor and power. Thousands will fall in pursuit of glory. And for love, a nation will burn to the ground.

Troy (2004) DVD Review:

Wolfgang Petersen gives an introduction to the extended cut of the film, explaining that the score has been changed and character elements added in. The well spoken director seems passionately attached to the film, and this is usually a good sign when directors are allowed to revisit the films which have been cut down for theatrical distribution. The opening sequence is among the better moments returned to this cut. It is a simple and nearly insignificant sequence in which a dog wanders through a graveyard where a bloody battle has taken place. The dog wanders until finding a wounded and nearly dead man, which transitions into the theatrical opening for the film. It is a small change, but it is moments like these which should have been left in the theatrical version, regardless of how worried studios were about profit. Many directors are forced to compromise their vision, regardless of past success and artistic value.

From this opening we are brought to the first battle, one in which the entire war is to be decided with a single fight between each army’s best man. After decades of wars Agamemnon (Brian Cox) has forced all of the kingdoms of Greece to fight under his control. He has done this with the help of Achilles (Brad Pitt), an arrogant and skillful fighter. Agamemnon’s brother, the King of Sparta is tired of warfare and would like to make peace with Troy, a powerful rival across the sea from Greece. This seems to be going well when the brothers of Troy, Hector (Erica Bana) and Paris (Orlando Bloom), visit the kingdom of Sparta. Hector, the elder brother, is the wise and dominant brother, leaving Paris to be foolish. This is the case when he begins an affair with the Queen of Sparta, Helen (Diane Kruger). When the brothers finally leave Helen is smuggled aboard their ship, which begins a war which was meant to never happen as the very reason for the Trojan visit in the first place.

When assembling the army which is to attack Troy all at once, it is inevitable that the help of Achilles will be needed, which is somewhat difficult considering his hatred for Agamemnon, but he is convinced for egotistical reasons and brings along his younger cousin, who he has trained to fight and acts as a brother to. It is not accidental that within the first half-hour of the now 3-hour film we are introduced to three pairs of brother relationships, in a film which is essentially about brotherhood and loyalty withheld to extraordinary lengths. Petersen does a fantastic job of establishing this epic story, though it is still a difficult film to compare to the many other epic films which came earlier. There is certainly a difficulty in accepting the many weaknesses in the characters along with their astonishing strengths in battle. These strengths are seen especially when Achilles and Hector fight, but a majority of Troy is about the human drama much more than the battles, though there are some bloody ones when 1,000 ships set out from Greece to obliterate Troy.

Around thirty minutes were added back into the film, some of it superficial, much of it character developing, a great deal of additional bloodshed on the battlefront, and extended sex scenes with plenty more nude Pitt. Since the film is over three hours it is split onto two discs. The second disc also contains the special features, which are all featurettes. “Troy in Focus” is a series of new featurettes about the production of the film, with some focus on the director’s cut of the film. Petersen gives a number of interviews which is mostly what these featurettes are made up of, other than footage from the shoot with the director commenting over it. “In the Thick of the Battle” is split into five sections, all dealing with different aspects of filming the battle scenes. “From Ruins to Reality” is all about the production design in trying to create the most accurate portrayal of the times. They combine research with imagination, which is shown in several different aspects of the production design, from the city of Troy to the wooden horse. “Troy: An Effects Odyssey” is a series of featurettes dealing with the visual effects used in the film, including CG inserted soldiers and four featurettes on the sound. “Attacking Troy” is split into three sections; a featurette about the adaptation of Homer’s story, one about the fighting style created for Pitt and others in the film, and a featurette about a stunt flipping over a chariot. The last feature aside from the trailer is a strange CG gag using some of the basic CG footage for Troy.

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Troy (2004) DVD review written by: Ryan Izay

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