Troy (Director's Cut Ultimate Collector's Edition)

"Troy" is a film that captivates from the first moment to the last. Set in the legendary city of Troy during the Trojan War, this cinematic epic is a visual masterpiece that combines action, drama, and romance in a masterful way.The first thing that stands out about this film is its stunning direction and cinematography. Every scene is meticulously shot, from the breathtaking battles to the lush landscapes, transporting the viewer to ancient Greece in an astonishing way.The cast of actors, led by Brad Pitt as the brave warrior Achilles, delivers convincing and emotive performances that bring the legendary characters of Greek mythology to life. The chemistry between the main characters, including Achilles, Hector, and Helen, adds depth and emotion to the plot.Furthermore, the battle scenes are simply spectacular. The choreography of the fights, combined with impressive visual effects, creates moments of tension and excitement that keep the viewer on the edge of their seat.While the film takes some creative liberties with the original story, overall it manages to capture the essence and spirit of the legend of Troy in a captivating way.In summary, "Troy" is a cinematic masterpiece that combines an epic narrative, outstanding performances, and impeccable direction. For lovers of historical cinema and Greek mythology, this film is a must-have in the collection. Get ready to be transported to an era of heroes and legends with "Troy"!

Nice price for a good movie.

I liked it.

Adheres to the classic poem

As a teacher of Classical Greek and Roman Mythology I was looking forward to "Troy." In the past I have put together a unit on the Trojan War that included not only Homer's epic poem the "Iliad," but also the plays of Euripides and Aeschylus and other ancient works on the stories of these characters. In other words I am familiar with this story to the extent that when Briseis showed up wearing a garment with long sleeves I was upset that we did not get to see the lovely arms that were part of her usual epithet. So, suffice it to say, that when characters who survived the Trojan War started dying in this film, I was not exactly happy. Consequently, the truth is that the less you know about the Trojan War of classical mythology, the more you will enjoy Wolfgang Petersen's "Troy."I have no problem with the idea that Homer and the other ancients have to be adapted in making a modern motion picture about the Trojan War. The decision to eliminate the gods is appropriate, getting away from the idea that this was a ten year war makes sense, and if the alliance of the Greeks is now political rather than as part of an oath sworn by the princes who were suitors for Helen's hand, I consider that to be legitimate. I do not understand why Iphigenia, Cassandra, and Hecuba are all eliminated but there are not fatal omissions. But when you start rewriting who gets killed that is going a bit too far, especially when one premature death starts a chain effect that means Athens will never develop the jury system, which means we probably lose out on it too. David Benioff's screenplay was "inspired" by Homer's "Iliad," which at least is an honest way to characterize what he did in this script, but I still do not have to like it or endorse it.The big selling point for this film was not Homer but rather Brad Pitt as Achilles. Stories abound about how Pitt worked six months to get in shape for this film, gave up smoking, and ended up hurting his Achilles tendon in one of those profound ironies that indicates that maybe the gods were not pleased with what was happening in this film. Pitt certainly looks good, not just in terms of taking several opportunities to display the line of his nude body, but in how he carries himself as Achilles. The whole idea is that this guy is the greatest warrior on the face of the planet and Pitt exudes that with the way he strides across the sands of Troy. Even more impressive is the choreography for the fights, because Pitt's movements are so smooth and powerful, especially compared with that of Eric Bana's Hector, that you do not doubt that this guy is in a league by himself as a warrior. I also like the way he uses the distinctive form of his shield when fighting. They thought this part out quite a bit.The fight choreography was worked out by Simon Crane, the film's stunt coordinator and second unit director, who describes Achilles as fighting with a boxing style but with the velocity of a speed skater and the agility of a panther. They also come up with a nice touch in that Achilles looks slightly to the side at his opponent until he is ready to come in for the kill. The best fight sequences of "Troy" are when Achilles is fighting. The giant battle sequences of computerized soldiers are not as impressive, mainly because the camera is always in motion and the cutting is so fast that we are left with an impression of the battle rather than always being able to tell what is going on (which has become my constant complaint with most movies with large battle sequences).Bana does a good job of capturing Hector's nobility without turning him into a marble statue, while Peter O'Toole fills the role of Priam naturally. On the Trojan side the problematic character is Paris (Orlando Bloom), again because of the writing more than the performance. Priam has negotiated peace between Troy and the Sparta of King Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson), but that is destroyed when Paris persuades Helen (Diane Kruger) to run away with him. Both Hector and Priam know that Paris is wrong and their reasons for supporting him and thereby dooming Troy ring hollow (the less than stellar "Helen of Troy" television miniseries did a nice job of providing a solid motivation for the Trojans to protect Helen).It you want to draw a clear distinction between Homer's story of Achilles and that of Benioff it is that the former is about the rage of Achilles (see the first line of the "Iliad") and the latter adds an equally strong love element. The one character whose role is most inflated in this version is that of Briseis (Rose Byrne), the Trojan slave girl who comes between Achilles and Agamemnon (Brian Cox), the king of kings for the Greeks. This change becomes the reasoning behind how the film rewrites the end game of the Trojan War, although I still do not understand why some of the key characters get to live happily ever after. But since Pitt's performance dominates the film and he is clearly the horse that director Wolfgang Petersen is riding to make the whole thing work, it makes sense that he has to be around until the very end.The good news is that when I teach mythology after this DVD comes out my students will probably enjoy attacking Benioff's changes in the original stories of Greek mythology in their papers. I think this will definitely help them understand why the writings of Homer and the other ancients are considered classics.

We love this and now we can stream away!

First of all Im not sure I saw the same movie that all these nay sayers have seen. That some didnt like this movie is understandable, but to call it a "bad movie" or "boring"? I just think that's a giant stretch even by the harshest of critics.Troy, is a wonderful modern-day interpretation of Homer's "The Illiad" which must be one of the most well known story's of all time. The Trojan war was long thought to be a myth, which no basis in reality. Untill one historian spent his life searching for the city of Troy and found what he believed to be it's ruins. This sparked a lot of debate on whether such a tale might well have it's roots in real events."Troy" is born of this desire to contemplate "what may have really happened". It doesnt have any God's or Godesses, nor does it really stick firm to Homer's tale. What it does is take Homer's work and reintepret it through the mindset of "hey this is what might have really went down". This is why many such as Robert Ebert didnt like "Troy", because they were expecting Homer.But the storyline of troy has all the essence of homer only portrayed in a more realisitic version. Helen, wife of the king of Sparta, falls in love with Paris Prince of the powerful city state of Troy. She willingly sneaks out of Sparta and from a loveless marriage to the trojan boat and returns with Paris to Troy. This sparks a chain of events culminating in a massive war and the fall of a city. The King of Sparta is outraged and appeals to his brother - Agamemnon - who has just finished uniting the cities of greece under his rule. Using his brother's misfortune as a pretext for war, he assembles a 40,000 man strong army and sails them to troy on 1,000 ships. And so begins the trojan war.The acting throughout the movie varies from acceptable to spectacular. Brad pit gives an excellent performance as the hero Achilles. But Achilles of the movie is not immortal or divine, just an amazing warrior with a complex personality consisting of strong narcasism and some true honor (they dont always mix well). The character of hector is brilliantly portrayed as a man who has seen war and knows there is no glory in it, the antithesis of achilles. While Peter O'Toole (yes from Lawrence of Arabia!) does a FANTASTIC job as the Trojan king Priam. One scene is truly dramatic as he begs achilles for the body of his fallen son, proclaiming "even enemies can show respect".The battle scenes and special effects are amazing, and the battles in troy are second to none. But it's not all action, in fact much of troy is a look at the nature of war and politics. How the macro affects the micro. How small events trigger big ones. How ordinary people can play a part in larger than life stories. And how history plays out similar stories again and again. There's a strong anti-war message underlying the film. There's also a lot of unfinished ideas and holes in troy that never get filled. The end feels rushed and thrown together, and some interesting ideas brought up by the film are never fully explored. This is made up for by some truly GREAT scenes. Such as when the Greek fleet apears on the horizons of Troy. Bells are sounded, and all the characters react when they look out to see the horizon clouded with enemy ships. This scene is so well done it amazed me.All things considered I found Troy to not only be a great movie, but a great analysis of how the world works and how the greed of the few culminates in the suffering of the many. It wasnt as powerful as gladiator, and it isnt going to have the broader appeal of LOTR (it's not that kinda movie at all, completely different genre in fact), but while it's no Brave Heart, troy is the first movie in a while to come close to being in that class and is certainly an excellent movie.

One of my favorite movies, a thrilling and exciting movie

The epic war between the Greeks and the Trojans and the fall of great warrior Achilles.

Was mir zu Troja spontan einfällt… ich hatte gelesen… der Director’s Cut wurde unter anderen auf 16 hochgestuft, weil Brad Pitt sich in den Bettszenen zu sehr entblößt hatte… Achilles hat eine einzige verwundbare Stelle, seine Ferse… das erinnert mich an die Nibelungen mit Siegfried, einzige verwundbare Stelle auf dem Rücken… Als Achilles im Film stirbt, sagt man, dass er an dem Pfeil in seiner Ferse stirbt. Und nicht an den Pfeilen in seiner Brust. Er kann alle abknicken außer den in seiner Ferse. Ich denke, dass man nicht an einem einzigen Pfeil in der Ferse sterben kann - sofort. Entweder hat ihn dieser Pfeil wieder sterblich werden lassen und er ist dann an den Pfeilen in der Brust gestorben oder nur Achilles selbst, wenn er einen Pfeil in die Ferse bekommt, stirbt daran… jedenfalls entstand dieser Mythos der Achillesferse, wo ein System eine verwundbare Stelle hat… Anders als im Film muss Helena wieder zurück nach Sparta… Und Paris stirbt in der Sage… wäre ich damals in Troja gewesen und was zu sagen gehabt (Haaaahaaaa), ich hätte das Trojanische Pferd nicht in die Stadt gezogen und mitgenommen… es sah schon so gruselig aus… ich hätte es am Strand stehen gelassen…

Definitely not my taste but recipient delighted with it!!

Item as described and in perfect condition

Troy has always been a favourite of mine, scoring around a 9.2/10 in my opinion as its one of the few films most people don't mind watching again. By pure chance as I was scanning for the odd left over HD-DVD films that spring up for a few pennies, I came across this Directors cut of Troy that I never really knew about. Should I have bought it though ? And Should you buy it, you may ask ? The answer is a sword slashing, blood lusting, raunchy ( hence the use of the term Bap's ) yes ! My self and a friend of mine counted around 16 different or extended sequences, all of which have the movie play distinctly different to the theatrical version most of us know. Also noted was the different musical score used, again, changes the whole feel of the film from a basic story with lots of easy to follow action, into a full on story that really puts you into the characters and settings in a good way. From the first ( different ) scene to the last ( extended ), this is Troy all over again !If your a fan of the film and have a HD-DVD player ( or can get the directors cut on another format ) then you must pick up a copy of this version. It stands outside your house shouting to you in true Achilles style " Hector !" :-)9.8/10 !!!!!