Synopsis for
Troy (2004) More at IMDbPro »

As the story opens, 3,500 years ago, civilisations are being built, wars fought, alliances forged, across the cradle of the West. Legendary Greek warrior Achilles (Brad Pitt) fights with, but not for King Agamemnon's (Brian Cox) army. Half God, Achilles is faster, stronger, and more deadly than any man, as he shows defeating the giant Boagrius (Nathan Jones) in single combat, thereby binding Thessaly into Agammnon's growing nation. This establishes one wing of Homer's complex plot: Both Achilles and Agamemnon have their eye on immortality, of the kind that will see their names on our lips thousands of years hence.

As King of Troy Priam (Peter O'Toole) seems to have begun a negotiated peace with King Menelaus of Sparta (Brendan Gleeson) and perhaps larger Greece, his son Prince Paris (Orlando Bloom) has become infatuated with Menelaus's the beautiful wife Helen (Diane Kruger). News that Trojan Paris has stolen away Spartan Helen unites all the Greek armies under Mycenaen Agamemnon. Thus, with a dispute between two men, begins the conflict of nations: The Trojan War. A total of 50,000 soldiers set sail to Troy in a thousand ships, and soon the walls of Troy, invincible to all previous invading armies will test this new alliance.

The battle begins with Achilles and his Myrmidons forging a beachhead, and through discipline and skill taking the beach and the temple of Apollo almost by singlehandedly. In a memorable scene, Achilles looses his spear several hundred meters, driving it through the head of Trojan warrior Tecton. Priam's brave and level headed son Prince Hector (Eric Bana) leads the force to hold the Greeks on their beach head and enters the temple. Here he meets Achilles, who he lets him go free. Achilles is not wont to kill a fellow warrior, and yet knows and says that he will: But another day, perhaps when their tragedy can play to a better audience.

Tensions build between Agamemnon and Achilles. As Agamemnon takes tribute from his fellow kinds for his "victory", Achilles' is disdainful, and, Agamemnon takes the young priestess Briseis (Rose Byrne) from Achilles he curses Agamemnon: Achilles is not owned by Agamemnon but is his own man, and he and his men remain out of the next battle.

The massed armies meet before the gates of Troy. Agamemnon demands the return of Helen to his brother and submission of Troy to the Greek empire. Rebuffed by Hector, Paris offers to fight Menelaus in single combat. But Paris, foolish romantic boy who stole Helen away is not the man his brother is. Defeated, he crawls back to his brother's feet. Hector kills Menelaus. The die is cast: Battle ensues

Without the Myrmidons and Achilles tactical genius, the Greeks are beaten badly: fighting beneath the walls of Troy, they fall in their thousands to massed Trojan archers, with all the advantages of height and distance. Odysseus (Sean Bean) advises Agamemnon- fall back: you won't have an army if you don't fall back.

With Menelaus gone, the original purpose of the war is gone. Still Achilles will not rejoin the army, despite Odysseus' reasoned argument. Reunited with Briseis, Achilles engages her with a deeper intellect and reflective nature than she thought possible. Achilles' sense of individualistic timelessness - that all will begin and all will end, but that how we perform our hour on this stage is everything  sees Briseis fall in love with him and Achilles determines to return home.

All council Greek retreat.

In the Trojan camp, religious leaders, who know nothing of battle, but everything of court politics argue for immediate attack. Hector now shows a break with human history: he is not impelled by the day's victory, nor by gods and omens, but councels that Troy not repeat the Greek's mistake of underestimating their enemy: they have a proven strategy, the Greeks have failed to respond - perhaps, as is the case, they might now return home in their hubris. Priam listens to the priests omens over his son's reason, and the Trojan army prepare to attack, far from their defensible walls, driven to drive the Greeks into the sea.

The Trojans attack with fire: tremendous straw balls burning like Napalm. The Apollonian force and Trojan army descend on the Greeks, their backs to the sea.

But then Achilles appears, Mrymidon's with him: the Greeks rally tremendously, Hector easily kills this ill-coordinated and weak "Achilles" in battle - only to find it is Achilles young cousin and lover Patroclus (Garrett Hedlund), tired of being out of the fight and dreaming of glory. The battle ends: Hector knows that defeat has been snatched from jaws of victory and prepares his wife (Saffron Burrows) to escape should the Greeks now win the war.

Vengence turns Achilles mind from love to blood: He challenges Hector, and they fight to the death, a fabulous pitched battle of two men, ending in Achilles dragging the dead Hector's around Troy behind his chariot.

Priam pleads for his son's body, and Hector is returned for a ceremonial funeral lasting 12-days of truce. At the end of this time, the Greeks appear to have left: a large Wooden Horse (Odysseus's idea) their parting gift to Troy.

The wooden horse is taken into the city, and the Greek soldiers inside open the gates of Troy to the Greek army... all is lost, all is won. Brave and wise Hector and his kind peaceful father Priam are dead. Menelaus, Patrcoclus, Achilles, all dead. Romantic Paris escapes to live in the wilds with Helen. The Greek victors begin their Odyssey.

Douglas Young (the-movie-guy) and Timothy Bates