Customer Reviews

National Geographic - Beyond the Movie - Troy

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This documentary on Troy and Trojan War is brought to life in such a vivid and entertaining way as only the folks from the National Geographic could. Shown on the National Geographic channel as the special "Conquering Troy," this documentary appeals to everyone from the casual history buff or mythology fan to historians and scholars alike.

There are re-enactments of the various scenes from Homer's "The Iliad" and Virgil's "The Aeneid" sprinkled throughout. The documentary talks about Homer's tale but also attempts to unearth the truth behind the mythology. That is: Did Troy really exist? Was there a Trojan Horse? Did the war between Troy and Agamemnon's Greek fleet really take place? Were there really such persons as Achilles and Agamemnon, Helen and Paris? These questions are answered by comparing Homer's and Virgil's texts to the actual findings by archeologists and scholars - for instance, excavations by Heinrich Schliemann in the 1870s and Carl Blegann in the 1930s that determined that present day Hissarlik, Turkey, was in fact the site of the ancient city of Troy. There are also several interviews from historians, archeologists and scholars as well as film footage and pictures of the various dig sites, findings and treasures from Troy and Mycenae (Agamemnon's Greek city).

I grew up fascinated with Greek and Roman mythology and, in anticipation for the upcoming film "Troy," I was eager to learn more about the Trojan War. This show is enlightening and interesting, to say the least. Fans of mythology and those who want to learn more about Troy and its history will certainly enjoy this documentary.

I can't help but wonder if I saw the same video as those who gave this five stars. When I bought it I was really looking forward to it - in that I have a great many National Geographic Video's, all of which are very good. This one is not up to their standards.
The re-enactments are really bad (they look more like Romans rather than bronze age greeks). I was also underwhelmed by the information or lack of.

My daughter Sonya asked me to write a review and tell she really liked the DVD.

Now my two cents. Basically the main line of this story is if the site currently known as Troy is the Troy from the Iliad. A few experts are sharing their opinions and their conclusion is basically yes, it could be that Troy. But this film doesn't tell much about the Iliad, a lot of time is spent showing the modern time actors playing ancient scenes somewhere in the US (not very convincing to my taste). Another big part of the file is about the treasure known as the Gold of Troy, currently held in Moscow. There is some interesting footage from Turkey and Greece, but unfortunately, not as much as I would expect.

Overall, this is an interesting program to watch especially if you going to see the movie "Troy". But it could've been done better. Too much modern stuff, too little about the ancient Troy.

I was very disappointed. These National Geographic specials are usually quality productions. But this one seems more of an afterthought than a serious effort. The actors walk around in cheap high school costumes that make no effort at all to be historical. And the expert commentary seems very tongue-in-cheek. Nothing in this special is at all special. I really expected better.
Check out Michael Wood's "In Search of the Trojan War" instead. It has more of what you expected to be in this DVD.

This was very disapointing. The re-enactments were horrible. Watch In Search of the Trojan War instead its long but it provides a lot more information or better yet read "The Ancient Greece of Odysseus" by Peter Connolly.

I loved watching this DVD. I felt transported back to ancient times and as if history came alive in front of my eyes. I learned a lot more about the subject, was glued to the interviews and was absolutely blown away by the gorgeousness of the landscapes.

Not as bad as the Alexander fiasco that NG put out, this has more to do with the search for Troy than the Iliad. Even so, I still dispise using Roman God names while reading from Homer, which happened.

It certainly could have been better, but it certainly could have been much worse.