Reviews
Helen of Troy (2003)
The Iliad is NOT history
I find it quite absurd that people go on and on about the discrepancies between the Iliad and this movie. So you've read the Iliad. So what? The Iliad wasn't history when Homer finally wrote it down 500 years afer it happened. If you think the Greeks launched a 10 year war over a kidnapped woman, you are in need of medication. The greeks were not stupid, even in 1250 BC. A more plausible explanation for the Trojan war would be a sociopathic psycho like Agamemnon's greed for power and loot.
And as far as Helen not being pretty enough for you, who knows what the standards for beauty were 3500 years ago.
However, I found the acting to be shallow and the attitudes and dialogue obviously modern.
SPOILER!!
The best part of the movie was Clytemnestra's revenge on Agamemnon in the bath. It was the best acted scene of the entire movie.
The final scene of Helen and Menelaeus was moving also. Finally, the characters got some lines, however terse, that had some meaning.
The Incredible Adventures of Marco Polo (1998)
Not sure what this movie is about.
This movie began as a historical account and then degenerated into a very poor adventure tale with ridiculously choreographed fights and no plot whatsoever. It's historical accuracy is non-existent. However, if you like Jack Palance or Oliver Reed their performances attract the only attention this movie deserves, even if they had utterly stupid lines. I couldn't finish this movie and returned it without even rewinding it.
Merlin (1993)
Shallow and disjointed, without any saving graces.
When I saw this movie, it became immediately obvious that the story line gave only cursory lip service to the legend of Merlin. The story line was practically made up as they went along and there was absolutely no continuity. The acting was so bad and the script so ridiculous that by the time the movie was over, I was downright angry. Angry that I had wasted my time watching it and angry that James Hong and Richard Lynch had squandered perfectly good careers on this movie which is an utter waste of film.