#the only redeemable thing about troy movie is eric bana in that royal blue outfit

[johaerys-writes]

The Troy movie kills off Menelaus. Agree or disagree with the script change?

There is literally NO script change in the Troy movie that I agree with lmao, and Menelaus dying is no exception. Like where do I even begin? From the fact that it is blatantly incorrect? That it completely disregards and throws in the trash Menelaus' later role in the Iliad? That he is supposed to protect and carry Patroclus' body back to the camp (hello??) That he is supposed to survive the war and take Helen back to Sparta (an important detail of the Epic Cycle), and then also appear in the Odyssey to welcome Telemachus and his crew in his home? Like who is supposed to do all those things if Menelaus is dead?

And, okay, let's say that the directors of a shitty Hollywood movie don't give a shit about all that. You have Menelaus of Sparta, the owner of the finest thighs in the Achaean army, be killed by Hector?? Fucking-- Hector? Like I'm willing to forgive a lot but this is just irredeemable. First of all, Hector would never. To have him intercept the duel that is meant to decide the course of the war and which was agreed upon by both sides, to save his bro from supposedly ruthless, bloodthirsty Menelaus? That's just such nonsense characterisation and something unthinkable in the world of the Iliad, a transgression permissible only to a god-- which is what actually happens in the story. Like, I really don't know if Hector or Paris would have been able to go back to Troy and face the Trojan soldiers after having done something like that. The fact that Paris violated Menelaus' hospitality and took off with Helen is a huge thing all by itself, but the fact that Aphrodite had a hand in it is what makes it somewhat acceptable; to have their princes disgrace and humiliate themselves and Troy as a whole like that I think would be a step too far. How the directors even thought of changing something so basic is beyond me.

Second of all, the Troy movie's obsession with framing Hector as the ultimate, most noblest heroic hero PISSES ME OFF like nothing else. As I've said in a previous ask, there are no "heroes" in the modern sense in the Iliad. "Hero" in the Iliad simply means a warrior, a person who does things. The Trojans and the Greeks are similar in customs, battle prowess, culture and refinement despite the infighting and constant bickering of both sides, and despite the fact that the Achaeans are in an imperialistic war against the Trojans. I've heard the argument that the Achaeans are the "barbaric invaders" and the Trojans the "noble invaded" far too often and I simply disagree, this has never been my takeaway while reading the Iliad. Hector, although he's Troy's most powerful, illustrious, loyal defender, a god-honouring person who is kind to his wife, his child, his aging father and mother (there's a lot to sympathise with when it comes to his character), is just as foolhardy, self-important, stubborn, opportunistic and human as any of the Achaeans he interacts with, he isn’t portrayed as being "morally superior" than them in any way because such a thing is irrelevant in the Iliad. It's just not the point of the Iliad to put anyone on a pedestal and elevate them above the others, the humans in the story take a lot of risks and initiatives and their personal struggles matter, but at the end of the day they are all ultimately powerless against the forces of fate and the will of the gods.

TL;DR: to have Menelaus die in the film, and die in such an idiotic way, is a weak-ass, pathetic move that shows no respect for the source material whatsoever, or any of the central characters.

Thanks for the ask! 💙