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Helen of Troy

Helen of Troy

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $15.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A cheap and mediocre version of one of the great epics
Review: I most honestly say after buying and watching this series, that the producers, the actors, and mainly the Director should be really shamefull of this insult to the memory of Homer, and the beautiful timeless story. In my opinion, everything is wrong and cheap, i'ts a mediocre Hollywoodize version where nothing works, Everybody is misscast, just look the cheap sets, where you see the painted wood, just an example: the Trojan casstle after the ten years, just spread with some black spray paint that you notice. The terrible fighting coreography (like the fight of Paris with the soldiers at the begining) The ridiculous customs with poliester crests, the acting!!, like when Hector is killed by Aquiles. conclusion: It's a kitsch film with no talent whatsoever, it's fun to watch as an involuntary humor piece, don't waist your money.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not Helen of Troi but a lot of crap
Review: First of all the writer should be sentenced to life time reading the ILIAD so he could understand what crap he wrote.
The plot of this version has nothing to do with what Homer wrote.
I can't understand why the writers keep changing the Greek legends as they like since even the most mediocre of them have filming possibilities as they are.
I thing that they were trying to appeal to all Xena fans outhere
and forgot that Xena has nothing to do with Greek Legends as it is a very nice fantasy series.
If you want to see this movie leave your brain to the door
and see it only as a fantasy film that has nothing to do with Homer

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Hmm....
Review: Helen of Troy wasn't the greatest tv movie... They left out a TON of stuff!! I'll start with: Castor, Helen's older brother and Polydeuces' twin- uh.. where did he go off to? Also...Polydeuces didn't die that way. He gave up his immortality after his brother Castor fell off a cliff in a duel to follow him to the Elysian Fields. While Menelaus was a kind and just ruler, in the Iliad, he didn't just stand around- he fought just as fiercely as the rest of the Aegean kings. Next- when Iphigenia was sacrificed, she was already the mother of one of Achilles' children... she wasn't exactly 7 years old. Helen was not actually made to parade around naked in front of a bunch of kings AND she actually chose Menelaus as her husband in the Iliad. Where exactly was Patrocolus? How can they justify the brutal killing of Hector by Achilles without the motivation of Hector's brutal killing of Patrocolus, one of Achilles' dearest friends? Another thing- Hector didn't just stand there and let Achilles throw a javelin through his stomach! He was the Trojan army's best warrior! Also, Achilles dragged Hector's body 3 times around the actual city of Troy, not some fire, before returning it to Priam for burial, which signaled the end of the poem, the Iliad. The movie really didn't emphasize that the Trojan War was also a battle involving opposing gods. Aphrodite rooted for the Trojans ( and her son, Aeneas who was the Trojan army's second best warrior), while Athena and Hera helped the Greeks. The war god, Ares, fought for both sides. Also, Helen is generally thought to have been under a strong spell, cast by Aphrodite, to make her fall in love (temporarily) with Paris. She was actually living a happy life with Menelaus prior to her abduction by Paris. After the end of the Trojan war and Helen went home with Menelaus, they led a happy life together once again. Another thing the movie fails to mention is Helen and Menelaus' daughter, Hermione. Also, Helen was not raped by Agamemnon, but Cassandra was raped by her brother Helenus at the Palladium, which is another critical part of the Trojan War which was not in the movie. Also, Briseis, who was Achilles' paramour, was not mentioned in the movie. Briseis is at the center of a quarrel between Agamemnon and Achilles in the first chapter of the Iliad. In addition to all that, after Paris died, Helen was married to his brother, Deiphobus before being returned to Menelaus. Oh well. It's alright. You'd be better off reading the Iliad. That movie Troy is coming out this May and that should be pretty good.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Love it, But Can't Wait To See Troy
Review: This was such a great movie. I know some people haven't liked it, but I loved it. I think they did a good job making it. I know most of the movie isn't true to the Greek legends. But hey they are legends, I mean how do we know any of this even happened? The movie also has great actors and actresses. So overall this movie is worth watching over and over.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Homer would be turning in his grave
Review: Aside from the names, i dont think the movie had anything to do with the actual story. Thyeus as far as I know died way before the Troyan war. Plus, he was killed by king Lycomides of Skyros, not Polideukis. Ifigenia was not a little girl when her father sacrificed her, and she did not die. The Goddess Artemis took her in a cloud and left a deer in her place. Achileas was no where near the other kings when Helen was given to Menelaus. And that is simply because at the time his mother Thetis had given him to king Lycomides to hide ever since he was a little boy. There are so many other things... All I have to say is that i switched it off way before the Greeks hit Troy... Whoever is looking for Homers epic story "Iliad" should NOT watch this movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: HOW TO TELL AN EPIC (...from a turkey)!!!
Review: Sure, lots of characters are missing -Castor, Patroclus, Deiphobus, Hermione, Laocoon, Diomedes- and the story gets somewhat refashioned to suit Hollywood tastes, but nonetheless it is told gloriously, and the locations, sets, costumes and special effects are nothing short of spectacular. WOW! This is how this stuff is meant to be shown! If you're a mythology freak like Myself Yourstruly, you're in for a guilty pleasure!

Sienna Gullory plays Helen as a pouting supermodel with a face that may launch a thousand surfboards at best, but Rufus Sewell ('Dangerous Beauty') makes a wickedly dashing Agamemnon and veteran John Rhys-Davies ('Raiders of the Lost Ark', 'The Lord of the Rings') is perfect as doomed King Pryam. Hecuba (Maryam D'Abo) looks great for a mother of fifty sons and twelve daughters! The rest of the cast I can't tell who they are or where I've seen them (Theseus was the KGB villain in 'Ronin' and Menelaus, the bumbling husband in 'Tracy Takes On'), but they all play their parts splendidly, particularly Cassandra and Clytemnestra...

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not true to it's story!
Review: I do agree with most people that the movie Helen of Troy was a good movie but not a great movie! The movie does not really compare to the Iliad. The many differences between the book and movie made the movie Troy of Helen to be somewhat boring. In the beginning the movie did not catch my attention unlike the story. The story catches your attention and gets right to the point. The movie focused on the scenery at first more than the characters or plot. When I expected Helen to come out, I thought you would be a gorgeous young lady like what the book described her as. Helen in the movie was plain looking and I don't understand why anyone would fight over her. The relationship between Paris and Helen was corny and fake in the movie. Paris's acting skills weren't true to the character in the book. The book describes Paris "the Trojan prince whose abduction of Helen was the cause of the Trojan War" the movie made Helen seem like the war was ALL her fault. A scene that I found confusing was when Hector was being killed and King Priam just stood there with his wife watching. In the book it seemed to be that King Priam really cared about his son he went to Achilles house where he put himself in danger just to ask for son's body. I felt like the movie wasn't totally true to the story but then again what movie is true to its original story?

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Effects not that good, Agammenon the best.
Review: This movie must be an Agammenon one, like the others reviews says that is not worth of be buyed, I think it is, maybe the other people prefer to watch only "Hollywood" stars as Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom..., on the coming up movie, I'm not saying that this Helen of Troy movie is the best I have ever seen about Greek mythology, but it is indeed a must seen movie, this movie might seemed as a TV movie maybe, wich reminds me a movie that I saw some years ago, called Cleopatra with Timothy Dalton, same as this movie, a must seem movie, not great effects on it, but great performance on the cast.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: An interesting take on the Trojan War. A must see!
Review: Having enjoyed Homer's 'The Iliad' and Virgil's 'Aeneid' and as a long time fan of Greek mythology, I was looking forward with great anticipation to this mini-series. 'Helen of Troy' is a creditable follow-up to greek myth-based offerings such as 'The Odyssey' (starring Armand Assante), 'Clash of the Titans' and 'Jason and the Argonauts' (both versions) and is brought to us by USA Networks, which recently released the acclaimed mini-series 'Attila' (starring Gerard Butler).

The first half of the story centers on Helen of Sparta (Sienna Guillory) and Paris of Troy (Matthew Marsden). It introduces us to Helen's family - King Tyndareus, her sister Clytemnestra and brother Pollux (though his twin Castor is nowhere to be found) and shows the abduction of Helen by Thesseus, King of Athens (Stellan Skarsgard). We are also introduced to Paris/Alexandros who is fated to cause the destruction of Troy should he live. On his birth, Prince Alexandros is therefore left on top of Mount Aida to die but is taken in by a shepherd and raised as his own son (hence, re-named Paris).

As a young man, Paris discovers his true heritage and is reconciled with his family - namely, King Priam (John Rhys-Davies), Queen Hecuba (Maryam d'Abo), Prince Hector (Daniel Lapaine) and Princess Cassandra (Emilia Fox). Helen marries King Menelaus (James Callis) of Sparta, younger brother to the power-hungry and vicious King Agammemnon (Rufus Sewell), whose thirst for power is so great that he makes the ultimate sacrifice in his quest to become king of the Aegean. When Helen and Paris meet, fall in love and elope, the stage is set for Agammemnon to use the elopement as an excuse to declare war on Troy. Those of us who are familiar with tales of ancient Greece know how it all ends, but this adaptation does provide a few surprises and some notable changes to Homer and Virgil's tales.

Highlights of this mini-series are the memorable performances, attractive cast, high production values and outstanding special effects. Rufus Sewell ('Cold Comfort Farm,' 'The Very Thought of You' and BBC's 'Middlemarch'), newcomer Matthew Marsden ('Black Hawk Down'), Emilia Fox ('Pride and Prejudice,' 'The Round Tower') and veteran John Rhys-Davies ('The Lord of the Rings,' 'Indiana Jones') provide great performances. Kudos goes to Rufus Sewell for his fantastic performance as the hard-hearted and villainous Agammemnon. Matthew Marsden and Daniel Lapaine (Prince Hector - though sadly in a much reduced role) are likeable, handsome, charismatic heroes. The locations in Malta are believable and realistic. The story itself is compelling and provides a great introduction to those who are unfamiliar with the Trojan War.

The mini-series does have its shortcomings. For one, I was not impressed with Sienna Guillory's performance as Helen. To be true, anyone who takes on the role of Helen carries a great deal of weight on her shoulders. After all, very few women can live up to being called 'the most beautiful woman in the world.' Though pretty, Seinna's beauty and talent fall a little short of the demands of the role and she sometimes plays Helen as a pouty, simpering little brat. I was also disappointed at the treatment of Menelaus and Hector. While Menelaus (who barely fights in the book) is treated as this 'kick ...' warrior, the 'mighty' Hector (who is the equivalent of 'Gladiator's' Maximus and is one of the greatest warriors in classic literature) actually takes a good beating from his enemies! Achilles is, at best, a one-dimensional 'he man' who is all brawn but no brains.

All these grievances aside, this is an enjoyable mini-series that deserves to be seen. I will most likely purchase this when it comes out on DVD. Those who enjoy a good dose of mythology and ancient/classic tales will no doubt enjoy this. I am now looking forward even more to the upcoming film version of the Trojan War - 'Troy' (starring Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Sean Bean and Orlando Bloom) - and hope to see a slightly different take on this classic story of love, hate, greed, revenge and honor.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A relatively faithful adaptation of Greek mythology
Review: For those seeking to be entertained, this movie fits the bill, as does the movie "Troy". For classicists, I encourage you to remember that neither "Helen of Troy" nor "Troy" ever claimed to be an accurate representation of Greek mythology, so it would be foolish to judge the movies by that standard; after all, neither movie is entitled "Homer's Iliad".


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