Classicist Says Brad Pitt Brings Achilles to Life

A pumped-up Brad Pitt plays a physically convincing Achilles in the blockbuster Troy, a movie that is “surprisingly lovely at times,” says the chair of UVic’s Greek and Roman studies department, Dr. Ingrid Holmberg. “Pitt does a great job of representing the physicality of Achilles. But Achilles is also known for his eloquence and introspection and the filmmakers didn’t let Pitt do too much of that.”
Holmberg, who is a Homerist and also instructs a course in how film interprets themes and narratives from the ancient world, says Troy brought Homer’s Iliad to life—even for someone very familiar with the work. “I’ve read the text hundreds of times in both English and Greek and there were very evocative moments in the film that made scenes from the epic come alive. I particularly enjoyed when Achilles talks to his mother about his fate before heading to Troy and a scene where the Greeks and Trojans ignite a long row of funeral pyres at night.”
Holmberg says the movie’s realism allows the audience to experience the Iliad very intensely. However, one aspect of the ancient text which Holmberg found missing in the movie was a “mythical quality” but she understands the filmmaker’s perspective. “It’s hard to get a modern audience to believe that gods are walking around and interfacing with human life. The filmmakers evidently chose to focus on the strictly human events of the Iliad. Mortals, whether in battle or not, must find a way to handle human mortality. The movie does a fairly good job of representing the Iliad’s examination of being mortal and facing death.”

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