Troy

And so comes this Summer's biggest movie of all - but is Troy really worthy of your time? We investigate.

Everyone likes "big" movies. You know, the kind of movie where the forces of good and evil collide in a landscape the size of a small country, often dressed in the smartest CGI effects yet seen and boasting an obscenely large production budget that you would imagine equals that of the aforementioned small country's GNP. Wolfgang Petersen's Troy looks set to capitalise on the current trend in epic moviemaking and if the phenomenal success of Lord of the Rings and Gladiator are anything to go by, this effort is going to maintain that trend - with gusto.

But rather than drawing from the fantasy realm, Troy sets itself apart from the others by being based on a story with a tad more truth to it - even if the concept of a giant wooden horse being used in a surprise attack stretches the imagination by today's standards. So whilst everyone is familiar with the Trojan horse, they might not be familiar with the story surrounding it. In this case, Troy takes its cue from the perspective of the ancient Greek poet Homer, and his spin on the Trojan War.

The year is 1193 B.C. and the Prince of Troy (Orlando Bloom) steals away the King of Sparta's wife, the beautiful Helen. The King of Sparta, Menelaus (Brendan Gleeson) sees this as an affront to his lineage and his empire, thus his brother Agamemnon (Brian Cox) unites the tribes of Greece so they may collectively set sail to wage war on Troy. Leading the assault against the fortress city of Troy is the renowned warrior Achilles (Brad Pitt), who must first topple the forces of King Prium (Peter O Toole) and Prince Hector (Eric Bana) before achieving victory and ultimate glory in the name of Sparta.

As has come to be expected with big budget Hollywood productions, the making of the movie has itself become the focal point of Troy: whether it be the untimely financial woes of one of the production partners or the tragic death of an extra on set, speculation and drama on set has perhaps unsurprisingly overshadowed the usually pedestrian and speculative ramblings of Hollywood.

But route through the rampant and idle speculation and it transpires that Troy is indeed an ambitious production: it's rumoured to host the largest manufactured set in Hollywood history as well an ensemble of extras that should keep the acting unions fury at bay for the time being. With these titbits of information kept in mind, every indication points to Troy being this year's epic Hollywood production, one that looks increasingly unlikely to fall short of the mark. Hell, Orlando Bloom's fan following is probably going to see the film break even, so lord knows just how many pennies they'll be counting in the aftermath.

Troy is taking every step to ensure that when it touches down in May, it's recognised as an epic blockbuster of a movie. From the diverse and A-list cast to the epic production values, nothing is being left to chance. We'll just have to wait and see if this promising project can deliver on its increasingly boastful promises.

Jamie Thomson
Film Critic, Kikizo Movies