In this third episode, we discuss the Brad Pitt vehicle Troy, a 2004-movie directed by Wolfgang Petersen. The movie doesn’t focus exclusively on the Homeric epics, but draws from the entire Epic Cycle, covering the whole of the Trojan War, from its immediate cause (the abduction of the Spartan queen Helen) to the sack of the city.
The team for this episode consists of archaeologists Matthew Lloyd and Josho Brouwers, and ancient historian Roel Konijnendijk. They talk at length about the film: the choices made in fitting the story within a fairly limited running length (a little over three hours for the Director’s Cut); the curious mix of Bronze Age and Archaic/Classical elements in set design, props, and costumes for a movie ostensibly set around 1200 BC; the performances, ranging from amazingly hammy to not so great; why more Sean Bean is the best reason to watch the Director’s Cut, and more.
This episode is also available on YouTube.