Troy is a 2004 epic historical action film directed by Wolfgang Petersen and written by David Benioff. Produced by units in Malta, Mexico, and Britain's Shepperton Studios, the film features an ensemble cast led by Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, Sean Bean, Brian Cox, Brendan Gleeson, Rose Byrne, and Peter O'Toole. It is loosely based on Homer's Iliad in its narration of the entire story of the decade-long Trojan War—condensed into little more than a couple of weeks, rather than just the quarrel between Achilles and Agamemnon in the ninth year. Achilles leads his Myrmidons along with the rest of the Greek army invading the historic city of Troy, defended by Hector's Trojan army. The end of the film (the sack of Troy) is not taken from the Iliad, but rather from Homer's Odyssey, Virgil's Aeneid and Ovid's Metamorphoses, as the Iliad concludes with Hector's death and funeral.
Troy premiered at Cannes on May 13, 2004 before being released by Warner Bros. Pictures on May 14. The film made over $497 million worldwide, making it the 60th highest-grossing film at the time of its release and Petersen's highest-grossing film. However, it received mixed reviews, with critics praising its entertainment value and the performances of Pitt and Bana while criticizing its story, which was deemed unfaithful to the Iliad. It received a nomination for Best Costume Design at the 77th Academy Awards and was the eighth highest-grossing film of 2004. A director's cut version, with thirty extra minutes of newly added footage, was released on DVD on September 18, 2007.
Plot
In 1184 BC, King Agamemnon unites the Greek kingdoms. Achilles, a mighty warrior, fights for Agamemnon but is sickened by his brutal leadership. Meanwhile, Prince Hector of Troy and his brother Paris forge a peace treaty with Menelaus, King of Sparta. Paris begins an affair with Menelaus's wife, Queen Helen, and he smuggles her aboard his homebound vessel. Angered, Menelaus meets Agamemnon, his elder brother, and asks him to help take Troy. Agamemnon agrees, as conquering Troy would give him control of the Aegean Sea. Agamemnon sends Odysseus, King of Ithaca, to persuade Achilles to join them. Conflicted, Achilles seeks guidance from his mother, Thetis, who tells him that if he remains in Larissa, he will live a peaceful life, while going to Troy will bring him both death and eternal glory. Inspired by the promise of lasting fame, Achilles chooses to join the war.
In Troy, King Priam welcomes Helen when Hector and Paris return home, and decides to prepare for war. The Greeks eventually invade and take the Trojan beach, thanks largely to Achilles and his Myrmidons. Achilles has the temple of Apollo sacked, and claims Briseis — a priestess and the cousin of Paris and Hector — as a prisoner. He is angered when Agamemnon spitefully takes her from him, and decides that he will not aid Agamemnon in the siege.
The Trojan and Greek armies meet outside of Troy. During a parley, Paris offers to personally duel Menelaus in exchange for Helen and the city being spared. Agamemnon, intending to take the city regardless, accepts. Menelaus wounds Paris and almost kills him, but is himself killed by Hector, which violates the pact. In the ensuing battle, Hector kills Ajax the Great and many Greeks die due to Hector's skillful leadership of the Trojan army which forces Agamemnon's army to retreat. He gives Briseis to the Greek soldiers for their amusement, but Achilles saves her and they begin to bond. Later that night, Briseis sneaks into Achilles's quarters to kill him; instead, she falls for him and they become lovers. Achilles then resolves to leave Troy, much to the dismay of Patroclus, his cousin and protégé.
Despite Hector's objections, Priam orders a counterattack. In battle, Hector duels a warrior he believes to be Achilles and cuts his throat, but then sees it is Patroclus. Distraught, Hector finishes him off in a coup de grâce, and both armies agree to stop fighting for the day. Achilles is informed of his cousin's death and vows revenge. Wary of Achilles, Hector shows his wife Andromache a secret tunnel. Should he die and Troy fall, he instructs her to take their child and any survivors out of the city to Mount Ida.
The next day, Achilles arrives outside Troy and challenges Hector. The two duel until Hector is killed, and Achilles drags his corpse back to the beach. Priam sneaks into the camp and implores Achilles to return Hector's body for a proper funeral. Ashamed of his actions, Achilles agrees and allows Briseis to return to Troy with Priam, promising a twelve-day truce so that Hector's funeral rites may be held in peace. He also orders Eudorus and the surviving Myrmidons to return home without him.
Agamemnon declares that he will take Troy regardless of the cost. Concerned, Odysseus concocts a plan to infiltrate the city: he has the Greeks build a gigantic wooden horse as a peace offering and abandon the beach, hiding their ships in a nearby cove. Priam orders the horse be brought into the city. That night, Greeks hiding inside the horse emerge and open the city gates for the Greek army, commencing the sack of Troy.
The soldiers of Troy attempt to defend the city but they are overwhelmed and massacred while most of the population is killed or taken as slaves. As the lower city is being sacked, Andromache and Helen guide the Trojans to safety through the tunnel. Paris gives the Sword of Troy to Aeneas, instructing him to protect the survivors and find them a new home. As the Greek army penetrates the palace walls, Glaucus leads the remaining Trojan soldiers in a valiant defense of the palace. Trojans kill many Greeks, but are ultimately overwhelmed and killed. Agamemnon enters the throne room, kills Priam and captures Briseis. She kills Agamemnon with a concealed knife, then Achilles fights his way through the city and reunites with Briseis. Paris, seeking to avenge his brother, shoots an arrow through Achilles' heel and then several more into his body. Achilles bids farewell to Briseis, and watches her flee with Paris before dying.
In the aftermath, Troy is finally taken by the Greeks and a funeral is held for Achilles, where Odysseus personally cremates his body.
Cast
Production Other than the Iliad, screenwriter David Benioff based the film on Homer's Odyssey, Virgil's Aeneid and Ovid's Metamorphoses. Additionally, he took inspiration from The Greek Myths by Robert Graves and Bulfinch's Mythology, as well as critical literature such as the works of Bernard Knox and his introduction to Robert Fagles's translation of the Iliad.
The city of Troy was built on the Mediterranean island of Malta at Fort Ricasoli from April to June 2003. Filming was initially slated to start in Morocco, but the producers chose Mexico after being forced to relocate after the Iraq War started. Other important scenes were shot in Mellieħa, a small town in the north of Malta, and on the small island of Comino. The outer walls of Troy were built and filmed in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Film production was disrupted for a period after Hurricane Marty affected filming areas. Pitt also suffered an injury to his Achilles tendon during filming which caused the production to delay for ten weeks.https://www.chicagotribune.com/2004/05/04/eric-and-brads-fight-club/ Both the Trojans and Greeks spoke with English accents, though the Trojan characters were portrayed with more refined and upper-class pronunciations than the Greeks. Brad Pitt, portraying Achilles, and Eric Bana, portraying Hector, both adopted British-inflected accents in their roles, reflecting a broader cinematic convention associating British speech with aristocratic or noble characters in historical dramas. Both Pitt and Bana trained for six months to get in shape for their roles.https://www.chicagotribune.com/2004/05/04/eric-and-brads-fight-club/
Terry Gilliam turned down the offer to direct the film, as he "did not understand how you can make a film based on the poem the Iliad without the participation of the Greek gods". Wolfgang Petersen had developed the film for Warner Bros. Pictures, before he chose to direct a planned Batman vs. Superman film instead. Christopher Nolan was then offered to direct Troy, but when Petersen's Batman vs. Superman was canceled, Petersen rejoined Troy, and Nolan was given Batman Begins (2005) as a "consolation prize". Nolan subsequently directed the 2026 film adaptation of Homer's Odyssey.
The role of Briseis was initially offered to Indian actress Aishwarya Rai, but she turned it down because she was not comfortable doing the sex scenes that were included. Keira Knightley also auditioned, but the role eventually went to Rose Byrne. The studio was initially interested in Nicole Kidman for the role of Helen, which eventually went to Diane Kruger. Kruger later said that she felt "like meat" during screen test for the film.
One of the extras, George Camilleri, is alleged to have died as a result of a set injury during the filming.Times of Malta Inquiry links stuntman's death with set injury The movie used Bulgarian extras, including in Mexico, where they were exposed to harsh conditions and were underpaid – they received $12 a day, compared to the Mexican extras, who received $40 a day. After going on a strike, their pay was raised by $10 a day.Bidoun.org Battles of Troy
Music
Composer Gabriel Yared originally worked on the score for Troy for over a year, having been hired by the director, Wolfgang Petersen. Tanja Carovska provided vocals on various portions of the music, as she later would on composer James Horner's version of the soundtrack. However, the reactions at test screenings which used an incomplete version of the score were negative, and in less than a day Yared was off the project without a chance to fix or change his music. Horner composed a replacement score in about four weeks. He used Carovska's vocals again and also included traditional Eastern Mediterranean music and brass instruments. Horner also collaborated with American singer-songwriter Josh Groban and lyricist Cynthia Weil to write an original song for the film's end credits. The product of this collaboration, "Remember", was performed by Groban with additional vocals by Carovska.
The soundtrack for the film was released on May 11, 2004, through Reprise Records.
Director's cut
The Troy: Director's Cut, also known as the 2007 Version (according to the end credits), was screened at the 57th Berlin International Film Festival on February 17, 2007, and received a limited release in Germany in April 2007. Warner Home Video reportedly spent more than $1 million for the director's cut, which includes "at least 1,000 new cuts" or almost 30 minutes of extra footage (with a new running time of 196 minutes). The DVD was released on September 18, 2007, in the US. The score of the film was changed dramatically, with many of the female vocals being cut. An addition to the music is the use of Danny Elfman's theme for Planet of the Apes during the pivotal fight between Hector and Achilles in front of the Gates of Troy. Josh Groban's song was removed from the end credits as well.