Troy
(HD-DVD)
Picture: B- Sound: B+ Extras: C Film: C-
Wolfgang
Petersen was going to do his Batman/Superman World’s Finest film at
first, but took on Troy (2004)
instead, making it entry in the big budget historical epic/fantasy cycle. Not that it had as much fantasy going for it,
but it would not have as likely been made without The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy making a mint. With Brad Pitt on starring as Achilles, Eric
Bana (The Hulk, Munich) as Hector, Orlando Bloom (Lord Of The Rings) as Paris and unknown Diane Kruger as Helen Of
Troy, the film hoped to score with a younger audience. They weren’t impressed enough to go.
Based on
Homer’s The Iliad, David Benioff’s screenplay is awkward, convoluted,
rocky, shaky, sometimes silly and badly paced.
Petersen lets the film get away from him very early, while nothing
memorable or interesting tends to result from the very, very long 162 Minutes
and the overabundance of digital work makes it more excruciatingly so. The actors try and the film even boasts great
actors like Brian Cox, Julian Glover, Sean Bean, Brendan Gleeson, Julie
Christie and Peter O’Toole, but does not use them enough and O’Toole in
particular spoke out against Petersen after the film fizzled in his
unhappiness.
One of
the biggest hoots in the film is the Trojan Horse, as shown on the HD-DVD disc
itself. That looks much better than the
final product, which looks like it was made in part by some cheap parts you
would more likely find in Fred Sanford’s junkyard than in Ancient Greece. Also, Kruger is pretty, but not beautiful
enough to convince anyone that her face could launch a thousand ships; even
digital ones! She does not even look the
part much. Cathy Lee Crosby is still our
favorite, and that was from an episode of Kolchak:
The Night Stalker, though Sienna Guillory from a 2003 telefilm on Helen has
more of the look.
Furthermore,
the editing is often choppy considering the amount of screen time they
had. The film also deals passively with
certain issues of homosexuality, which does not get into the trouble Oliver
Stone did with his also-problematic Alexander,
but Petersen has trouble here with the issue as he had with The Consequence (1977, reviewed
elsewhere on this site), though that was a bit more graphic. All in all, the film is many bits that never
add up to the epic tale it would like to and ultimately, the viewer feel like
they have been stuck with a Trojan Horse.
Then there are the technical aspects of the disc.
The 1080p
2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image was shot by cinematographer Roger Pratt,
B.S.C., in Super 35mm. His somewhat
spotty record includes highs like the better films of Terry Gilliam (Twelve Monkees, Brazil), the more commercial Harry
Potter films and disasters like The
Avengers. Part of the problem with
this production is the extensive plastering of digital video effects that were
lame-on- arrival when the film hit theaters.
The image is messed up here with the outdoors shots looking like
half-daylight and indoor shots seeming down a generation in detail and
brightness. What happened? Either way, you’d think at least some of this
would have been an improvement over the 35mm, but all is worse.
The sound
is another matter for better and worse.
The film has a rich enough sound mix that Warner has made it one of
their rare Dolby TrueHD releases, but it has the later James Horner score that
was added at the last minute to make the film more “commercial” and landed
accentuating its many problems. The original
score was by Gabriel Yared and it is a shame any mix with his music was not
available, because it could have improved the viewing. Petersen’s films are known for their
surrounds and sound design. Even with a
lame music score, this one delivers like The
Perfect Storm, reviewed elsewhere on this site in HD.
Extras
include a theatrical trailer, four-part previsualization section, 3-D CG
animated Gallery Of The Gods section, featurettes on the effects, action
sequences and production design, plus the HD-DVD-only optional In–Movie
Experience feature where Petersen guides you through the film with audio and
extra video. Needless to say the film
was ambitious, but in ultimately implodes under its own weight. Despite the picture troubles, the sound,
extras and how this film did not work will make it a curio HD-DVD for a long
while to come. However, a new edition
was released in HD-DVD (to the surprise of many) only a year after this one,
which we have covered at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6211/Troy
- Nicholas Sheffo
