The true story of homers iliad and the trojan war is more than an exploration of homers iliad. Name recognition, hollywood action, and special effects aid this blockbuster adventure in attracting a 21st century audience. Achilles duels hector who killed his cousin, patroclus. I think a big problem a lot of people had with this movie was that it wasnt strict iliad. Did the movie troy, released in 2004, accurately depict the story of homers epic poems the iliad and the odyssey, and was it a good movie from a critical point of view. In homers the iliad, facts about the fall of troy and wars in the region are fictionalized to improve the quality of the story, and.
Wolfgang petersens troy 2004 brings the trojan war to the screen. Archaeology magazine gets down way down to the details. This is also true for hectors wife, andromache, who becomes a slave to achilless son, neoptolemus, while someone kills her son, astyanax. The differences between the book iliad and the movie troy. If the film remained same as the poem iliad then the movie would have received more limited. Both population and physical size of troy are off by a factor of ten in the film. A2a to be fair, the recent movie, troy, wasnt half bad. The film troy which is directed by wolfgang peterson has been deeply influenced by the epic poem, the iliad. Nov 15, 2008 the producer of the movie troy, did a very good job of making it similar to the book the iliad. Yes, the movie is somewhat inaccurate to homers iliad, but. Archaeology magazine how do all the troy productions stack up.
Hd movie scene from the directors cut of wolfgang petersens troy i do not own the content of this video. The iliad v troy comparsions between the modern film. Dec 01, 2019 a plot point from the iliad missing in the movie troy is the plague which affected the greek troops. The iliad over the thousands of years that the epic story the iliad has survived, there has no doubt been some form of alteration to homers original. Troy the movie and homers the illiad amidst the hype surrounding the movie troy, wellesley college classics professor brendan reay. Brad pitt picks up a sword and brings a muscular, brooding presence to the role of greek warrior achilles in this spectacular retelling of the iliad. The site of ancient troy contains the overlapping ruins of ten different cities. The end of the film the sack of troy is not taken from the iliad, but rather from quintus smyrnaeuss posthomerica as the iliad concludes with hectors death and funeral. The iliad is not a history of wars, nor was homer a historian. Oct 16, 2012 first off, homers iliad was the main source of influence for wolfgang petersens film, troy. Greek writer and poet, homer, the author of the wellknown iliad and odyssey. Produced by units in malta, mexico and britains shepperton studios, the film features an ensemble cast led by brad pitt, eric bana, and orlando bloom. In both the iliad and the movie troy achilles kills hector, but after hector has been dragged, achilles in the movie troy takes the body of hector back to the greek camp but in the iliad the body of hector is left for the dogs. A plot point from the iliad missing in the movie troy is the plague which affected the greek troops.
In his histories, he observes that the ships homer describes in the iliad are really. The iliad demonstrates the close interactions between the gods and goddesses and their followers. The site is encircled by a high wall, just like in the story of the iliad. The iliad is a story about love, honor, betrayal, fate, ambition, and of course, hubris the adventure of the best warrior there ever was or will be. Troy is a very loose adaptation of the iliad and the achilles depicted in the book is nothing like brad pitts portrayal in the movie. Other ancient works excluding the iliad portray the two characters as lovers, while homer doesnt explicitly state that they are or arent lovers. Troy is a 2004 epic historical war drama film directed by wolfgang petersen and written by david benioff. Homers iliad is a tale of bloodshed, conquest, struggle, loss, fate, heroism and glory, centred within the greeks. But comparing it to the film troy the cultural aspects are different, mainly because troy is 21 st century and the iliad is written in 1488 bc. Ancient history documentary the true story of troy an. While it is true that the movie does not do the homeric story justice, it makes probably the. Whether the trojan war actually took place there is a matter of debate.
This point is alluded to in the scene in which the trojans discover the wooden horse on the. Besides the iliad, there are references to troy in the other major work attributed to homer, the odyssey, as well as in other ancient greek literature such as aeschyluss oresteia. The whole movie shows their battle struggles and the foreshadowing of fate in this adaptation of homers classic the iliad. Wolfgang petersens 2004 film, troy, isnt historically accurate and it isnt faithful to its literary source. Both the film and the poem have the same overall plots, such as the siege of troy by the greeks, the feud between the. It is difficult to transform an epic story about a war that took place over years into a single movie. The 2004 epic film troy catches quite the break when it comes to historical films. Major differences between the homers iliad and the film troy. Achilless myrmidons sack apollos temple before the rest of the greek forces arrive, effectively starting the war. How much is really true in the story of achilles in the. Fall of a city expands on homers the iliad, following paris from his childhood through the destruction of troy. It is very apparent that the film troy, directed by wolfgang peterson, has been heavily influenced by the epic poem, the iliad, a work commonly credited to the ancient greek poet homer. First off, homers iliad was the main source of influence for wolfgang petersens film, troy.
Jun 11, 2017 the mycenaean civilization fell in 1100 bc for reasons that have never been properly understood. May 16, 2004 the legend will live claim ads for warner bros. It took a realistic view of the events, rather than the l. Troy was burned and the population slaughtered, although many had other fates. Troy, the movie, and the mystery of the missing gods.
In that fact, i think this was done rather well in troy. I have to list 10 things that were in the iliad and not troy, 10 things in troy that were not in the iliad, and 10 things about how the perspectives of troy and the iliad are the same. Briseis remains with achilles until after his death. And homer would have loved the combat scenes though the iliad itself is a lot gorier. This movie is perfectly wellmade, from the distinguished art, to the intense battle sequences. Every philosopher interpreted them to justify their worldview. The film troy is a movie released in 2004 and was directed by wolfgang petersen, and has been influenced by the classical epic poem, the iliad which has been credited of the greek poet homer.
The movie troy, from hollywood has been one of the greatest hollywood movie ever. Jul 29, 2009 my video of the movie troy 2004based on homers iliad, directed by wolfgang petersen, featuring brad pitt, eric bana, julian glover and orlando bloom. There are several inaccuracies in the 2004 film troy, directed by wolfgang. The epic new series has been coproduced by the bbc and netflix, and is based on an ancient greek poem homers iliad serves as the.
Cultural aspects in the iliad and troy in the iliad there is a lot of culture. Some major differences between homers iliad and wolfgang petersens film troy, is that. I think it was a good movie from an entertainment standpoint, but it fell short. This work is generally credited to the ancient greek poet named homer. The homeric epics were composed much later than the era the trojan war took place if there was one specific trojan war and are literary works flowing from a wide tradition, not historical accoun. With the help of achilles, the greeks are able to fight the never before defeated trojans. Apr 06, 2005 compared to homers iliad, troy is rather disappointing.
Nov 27, 2017 looking at wolfgang petersons blockbuster troy 2004, the lecture describes the genesis of the iliad between the mycenaean late bronze age and the 8th century, when it was first written down with. Weve compiled a list of things that the films depiction of the greek hero has gotten very wrong. This is true, but you have to remember, this is a movie and it is impossible to drag what was recorded as a ten year war, i believe, out on screen. The hero of the iliad and of the 2004 movie troy is, of course, fictional, but the book is based on real historical events. Helen had many powerful suitors and her father was too afraid to pick one of them for her husband in fear of offending the others. The iliad verses troy i n the movie its stated that agamemnon brought the kings together for this war, which really isnt true.
But how much of it is a true story and how much is myth. However, even though it is directly influenced by the poem, troy does not stay true to. Orlando bloom and diane kruger play the legendary lovers who plunge the world into war, eric bana portrays the prince who dares to confront achilles, and peter otoole rules troy as king priam. Troy the movie and homers the illiad amidst the hype surrounding the movie troy, wellesley college classics professor brendan reay comments on the true essence of homers epic. Last may, wolfgang petersen directed a movie based on the iliad. This has a big impact on each others cultural differences. Alexanders interpretation of characters and events in the epic arrive at conclusions about the experience of war in generalconclusions that are applicable to all wars at all times and in all places. Jan 01, 2009 the war that killed achilles, however, is more focused on the iliad itself, about what messages homer was trying to as it is, ive seen the movie troy, whose main contribution to the world may have been the joke it inspired about achilles and patroklus in conclusion.
Troy, starring brad pitt, is a historical travesty film the guardian. Unlike in the iliad, helen is not won, but wooed by paris. The 2004 epic film troy catches quite the break when it comes to. This movie, troy, has proven to be a very loose adaptation of homers. Compared to homers iliad, troy is rather disappointing. The sixth and seventh oldest cities fit the descriptions of troy the best, and they fit the time frame of the iliad. Wolfgang petersens 2004 film, inspired by the iliad, edited out all the gods and nymphs, and made the war into an action. However, even though it is directly influenced by the poem, troy does not stay true to the poem for the entire movie. Aug 28, 2008 the trojan war was an epic siege carried out by the achaean greek kingdoms against the city of troy, around 1250 bc. Though the movie does a decent job of showing one of the theories of homeric warfare, the details of the fighting are often incorrect. The place where troy strays the furthest from the iliad is the relationship between brad pitts achilles and patroclus. Adaptations and retellings of homers epic poem the iliad are certainly not. Oct 14, 2012 major differences between the homers iliad and the film troy.
Nov 23, 2011 the iliad verses troy i n the movie its stated that agamemnon brought the kings together for this war, which really isnt true. Both the film and the poem have the same ending plots, such as the blockade of troy by the greeks. Brian cox as agamemnon rather chewed the scenery, but brad pitt as achilles made up for it by sleep walking through his performance. She gives her verdict on how the film troy compares with the iliad. This movie is the watereddown, greatest hits, classic comics version. The costumes and the art direction all stay true to the ancient greece setting, and they all create a realistic feel to the movie. There are many inaccuracies in the historical events depicted in troy, according to the historians. It is loosely based on homer s iliad in its narration of the entire story of the decade. Paris and helen are the two major characters to exhibit this idea as their forbidden love is the instigator to the battle of troy. Based on the epic poem the iliad by homer, the movie troy is one of the tragic histories of mankind. And achilles doesnt rage so much as pout and glower. Homers iliad via the movie troy 2004 professor edith hall. But, to be fair, one must keep in mind the limitations of a movie compared to those of a book, and the fact that the title is troy, not the iliad. It is loosely based on homers iliad in its narration of the entire story of the decadelong trojan warcondensed into little more than a couple of weeks, rather than.
How much is really true in the story of achilles in the movie troy. The real or realish menelaus survived the trojan war, and was. The homeric legend of troy was elaborated by the roman poet virgil in his aeneid. Screen adaptations of homers the iliad tend to focus on either the trojan war or the story of helen of troy.
The area believed to be troy is situated near two rivers, overlooking a fertile plain. Both texts deal with the same subject, the siege of troy which was ended with the trickery of the wooden horse. Wolfgang petersens 2004 film, inspired by the iliad, edited out all the gods and. Ancient history documentary the true story of troy an ancient war documentary the greek mythology is fascinating.
The movie does not let the viewer know that helen was a reward to paris for choosing to give a golden apple to the goddess aphrodite instead of the goddess hera or athena. How the movie troy doesnt even come close to historys. The 2004 troy movie is not historically accurate for the following reasons. In the movie paris and menelaus offer to duel each other and end the war before it begins. Aug 26, 2017 troy is an ancient city in turkey that has long been identified as being the setting for homers the iliad.
Viewers should note the difference between faithful adaptations and. Wolfgang peterson may have chosen to do this to try to show achilles as less of a barbarian than the iliad tells us. The reason of these differences in the film troy and the iliad are to convenience of the director and for entertainment. Troy, starring brad pitt, is a historical travesty film. In the epics, achilles is dead and gone by the time the wooden horse is built. Then i have to compare and contrast the two, and tell why perspective can change the telling of a story. This supreme insult sends menelaus to rally the support of his evil brother agamemnon, king of the mycenaeans.
The fortress city of troy is attacked by a heavy greek army led by menelaus of sparta and agamemnon of mycenae. In the film, the two are portrayed as cousins, with achilles being a mentor to his younger relative. The ending credits state that the film was merely inspired by homers the iliad. So they set off with 1,000 ships holding 50,000 greeks to troy. The main theme of the movie troy in the film, the major theme is the theme of love. It seems as though this fall was an apocalyptic event similar to the fall of rome 1,500 years later, for the evidence records in greece go dark, leading to what is known unoriginally as the greek dark age. Homer was a blind poet, whose two tales, the iliad and its sequel, the odyssey formed the scriptures for greek society, as their epic national poem. In particular, the major idea behind the theme of love is that love transcends all. But how closely does the film resemble homers work. How much is really true in the story of achilles in the movie. The producer of the movie troy, did a very good job of making it similar to the book the iliad. These cities also show damage to the wall that fits an earthquake, and arrowheads in the streets. Also much of the action that directly involved troy took place at the beginning or end of the ten year siege, it wouldnt be too difficult to show a time lapse within the movie.