UNWORTHY SACRIFICE

“If love is worth fighting for, it has known no greater battle than this.” The quote is true as it is in the movie of Troy, which is directed by Wolfgang Petersen.

I don’t know whether to call this a love story or a war story. Everybody knows the story about Helen of Troy. The movie had been remade so many times. This time, the title is only Troy, and the point of view is mostly from the war and battles.

The two most important things to learn from the history of Troy are the famous Trojan horse and the love story that claimed the fall of a kingdom. It’s the tragedy that claimed so many bloodsheds, lives of mighty warriors, and the fall of a kingdom, all for one thing called love (Or should I say stupidity).

Trojan horse has long become a famous term and is still used until today. Trojan is a term or terminology used to explain a trap, which is hidden or disguised as something harmless or even interesting. In the computer or Information Technology field for example, Trojan means a virus or a dangerous destructible codes, which is disguised in the form of harmless files, such as pretty pictures or even interesting commercials.

There was a kingdom so powerful and never been defeated in battle because of its strong defenses. No one had ever managed to break the defenses of Troy. One of the Trojan princes named Paris (Played by Orlando Bloom) fell in love with Helen (Played by Diane Kruger), Queen of Sparta. He managed to persuade her to leave her husband Menelaus and brought her along to Troy.

Menelaus found out that his wife left him and got really pissed. The thing that Helen was taken by the Trojans flamed up his anger. Menelaus asked his brother Agamemnon to help him win Helen back. Agamemnon saw this as an opportunity not just to take Helen back, but also the opportunity to defeat Troy and gained more power. There’s a perfect excuse and reason for him to set up a war against Troy.

So the strategies, tactics, troops, and armies were assembled. It’s Agamemnon with an ambition of power and territory, and Menelaus with an ambition of winning back his wife. One of the biggest and most bloody war in history were about to begin between the Greeks and the Trojans.

Between the Greek and the Trojans stood one mighty hero named Achilles (Played amazingly by Brad Pitt). Some said he was half God and half human because he couldn’t be wounded by normal weapons and never been defeated in battles. When he was little, he was baptized with his whole body dipped into the water with up side down body position. That was believed to be his source of power and immunities. But unfortunately, a part of his leg didn’t get dipped by the water because the man who’s holding him didn’t lower Achilles’ body deep enough. So his weakness was said to be around his ankle and feet.

Achilles didn’t believe all of those stories and his past. His self confidence and superior battle skills were the things that made him invincible. He had his own small but loyal and powerful army called the Myrmidons. Whenever there’re combats and battles, he’s the one who always charges first. He was a leader who led at the front. He bowed to no kings. He served to no kingdom. The reason he joined battles was because he wanted to as he fought only for himself and Greece. Odysseus, the King of Ithaca, was a very close friend of Achilles. He was the one who managed to convince Achilles to join the war for Greece as Greece would definitely needed help from a warrior like him. The battle would never be forgotten.

Achilles had to decide whether he wanted to join the war against Troy. The temptations of glory hunted him as he was born for wars. It’s in his blood with talents and power to win battles. People would tell stories of his victories and hear his name even long after he was gone. That was the choice he made… So the Greeks set off with 1,000 ships, 50,000 Greek soldiers, along with Achilles and his Myrmidon army. They’re about to face the great fortress of Troy with all its best Trojan warriors, including Prince Hector (Played by Eric Bana) who was said to be stronger than any other Greek’s warriors.

For those who know the history of Troy, they will surely know how the story ends. The clash between two kingdoms was inevitable. All because of one stupid prince who took someone’s wife and one king with bloodthirsty ambition to rule the world. You will also understand what a Trojan horse is and how it works. Maybe the song who sings “Too much love will kill you” is right after all...

Ivan the Freelancer