Tuesday, February 07, 2012

Overlooked Movies -- Helen of Troy

I'm talking about the 1956 version here, not anything more recent that you might have seen. The thing that impressed me most all those years ago was the wooden horse. I'd heard the story, of course, since back in those days, just about everybody had. I'm not so sure about now. But that's not important. The big horse was what I wanted to see, and it's there and it's great. There's also the "cast of thousands" that movie epics like this used to have before the F/X folks learned how to CGI the crowds. This is one of those movies that went all out for spectacle, and it's worth watching for that alone.

Probably only a few of the cast are remembered now. Maybe Stanley Baker and Sir Cedric Hardwicke being the two best known. Or Torin Thatcher. I, however, liked Rosanna Podesta a lot, and I didn't care that her dialogue was dubbed.

The plot pretty much sticks to Homer, and while I haven't seen this one in a while, I'd bet that it's more fun than 2004's Troy, which skimped on the spectacle.

Certainly Helen of Troy isn't a great movie, but it's entertainment in the grand style.


pattinase (abbott) said...

Those movies are fun just for the spectacle of it. That wooden horse captured every kid's imagination. Like a great big toy.

Fred Blosser said...

In a just world, Stanley Baker would have been cast as Conan or Kull in a movie that would have done justice to Howard. Baker had the look, the acting chops, and the ferocity