Helen of Troy

[GreenEyesToo]

Well, I watched this last night, and although I'm not a fan of blood'n'guts epics, I did enjoy this - Rufus being the main attraction, of course!

What a thoroughly despicable character Agememnon was!

Yet, once again, Rufus didn't just portray him as an out-and-out villain, so ambitious he'd do anything to get what he wanted without any compunction whatsoever. Instead, he showed us a man vulnerable to the whims of the gods, so in thrall to them that - far from being callous - the decision to sacrifice his little daughter as the only means to achieve his aims caused him real pain.

The look on his face when the seer told Agememnon that Artemis wanted the girl, and then when he found he had to be the killer, was just heart-breaking...as were the catch in his voice and the tears in his eyes as he described the murder to Helen, when she came to trade herself for the return of Hector's body. Who else but Rufus could make us feel sorry for a man like that?!

And he just looked sooooo gorgeous in that scene

Physically, I've never seen his upper torso that bulked up - gym-work, presumably? And the sight of those droplets of water on his chest and shoulders...excuse me, I just have to go and swoon...

And I like that beard (much better than the "unemployment" one).

Oh, and nice legs!

GE2 with hormones a'raging!
PS - did my eyes deceive me, or did I spot Ciarin Hinds amongst the soldiers at some point?

[quoll]

Cold shower girl, off you go and have a cold shower!

I have that "in the bath" pic as the wall paper on my phone! Told the DH that I would make him the wallpaper if he let me take a picture of him like that!

Agamemnon was deliciously evil sort of a chap - utterly ruthless in everything but underneath it all a man who had feelings (not that he would ever have admitted such to anyone). I found Paris to be boooooring and Helen couldnt see her launching a row boat let alone 1000 ships - not great casting as far as I could see. I didnt much like Achilles either he was a bit of a prat. I did like Cassandra and towards the end was thinking that Cassandra and Agamemnon would make a good couple.

[ree]

greeneyestoo said:

Yet, once again, Rufus didn't just portray him as an out-and-out villain, so ambitious he'd do anything to get what he wanted without any compunction whatsoever. Instead, he showed us a man vulnerable to the whims of the gods, so in thrall to them that - far from being callous - the decision to sacrifice his little daughter as the only means to achieve his aims caused him real pain.

Yes, yes, and the way he played the scene in which he actually sacrificed his little daughter...such emotion, I believed I was watching Agamemnon. He just gets to the crux of who his characters are & gives them life!! They become real to me then, ever after they exist!

[sevensisters]

So, GE2, I take it you enjoyed the film? Have you cooled down yet? Helen of Troy deserves its acronym: HOT, doesn't it? At least as far as Rufus is concerned. Not being a fan of blood'n'guts epics, either, I always fast-forward through all that battle stuff and concentrate on the man himself! Did you think about looking for the oopsie mentioned by Ree? I would guess not! LOL! You can do that on your next viewing.

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who sees in Rufus's villains that bit of humanity. It was there in the scene where he sacrifices his daughter. He seemed terribly moved -- but then he did it, anyway! Greed winning out over love.

I loved the beard and his curls! HOT is one of his most handsome roles! Now I've got to go cool off!

[GreenEyesToo]

sevensisters said:

Have you cooled down yet?
Did you think about looking for the oopsie mentioned by Ree?

Yes I have, and no I didn't - so hang on while I go and have a look, then I'll nip over to the Oopsie thread and report.

Added:

Tee-hee!!!

[maz]

Helen of troy and dangerous beauty's just arrived in the post , now i would rather stay home than go out and celebrate new year! ;D

[maxx02]

Dec 31, 2008 15:58:04 GMT maz said:

Helen of troy and dangerous beauty's just arrived in the post , now i would rather stay home than go out and celebrate new year! ;D

there is a lot of "pretty" in those two pictures. Hold out for Rufus telling Helen why he's done it, in HOT. It's about the only thing that makes the piece worth watching.

[peach]

I've not seen this yet. The consensus seems to be that it's well worth viewing. I'll have to get it from Netflix. Is it anything like T & O? Does he have a big part?

[ambra]

Well, GE2, your description has pretty much sealed it: I'm definitely getting the dvd of this along with "Charles II" when I get paid tomorrow!

[ambra]

Sorry for double-posting but I got "Helen of Troy" and "Charles II" today. HoT was ok, just wish Rufus was in it more, mostly because he seemed to bring the most depth to his character. He didn't portray a one-dimensional, stereotypical villian; the role made me realize how much acting he does with his eyes and facial expressions, especially the scene where he's told he has to sacrifice his daughter, the scene immediately after he kills her, and when he talks to Helen about it. His performance is a perfect example of how subltey is more effective than broad, over-the-top, scene chewing. And he does look great in a tunic and armour! Don't get me started on the all-too-brief bathtub scene! The man has a great set of pecs!

[tipou]

oh my god, i am striving to get through this.

i had decided to watch either middlemarch or this... thing.

your earlier comments about built up wet torsoes made me chose that... dvd, but then, it will be done and over with.

oh boy that's bad.

the dialogues are so pitiful you want to barf. acting is so bad, you have to hold your nose. helen of troy? this girl? if this is "the most beautiful girl in the world", well then, move over, elizabeth II, i am true queen of england.

these people ruled the world? they can't even fight properly! and they look like they are going to fall asleep any second!

ok so i still have not seen any droplets on any torso, nor any wooden horse, i still have 15 minutes to go through dvd 1 - wish me courage, i am getting back in there.

rufus. mon bébé, i am doing it for you. there is really no other reason, really.

see you later gals.

[peach]

Tip, just saw this for the first time as well, Helen was a complete bore, and men fought over this woman? Must have been pretty desperate times. Last scene w/Ruf is pretty good, I pretty much fast forwarded to him. The lengths we women go to for our green eyed beauty.

[tipou]

oh boy. agamemnon just sacrificed his daughter. hate the guy.
but at least, someone is acting in there, not just speaking and walking around. but our rufus seems to be mightily bored. another "job", i guess. every one's got to pay the rent.
and isnt ru the only guy in this thing that actually looks like a MAN?
even achilles seems to come straight out of a toy manufacture.
really.

[rueful]

I have only seen this online (sorry, does that get repetitious), and after trying to watch it all, I basically skipped through to the Agammemnon parts. (Get that mind out of the gutter, tipou.) He, John Rhys-Davies (spelling?), and Clytemnestra (don't know her name) seemed to be the only actual trained actors on the set. Everyone else seemed wooden (Helen, I'm looking at you) or hammy (Cassandra aka Emilia Fox, who I've seen in other things and liked). However, as I may have mentioned elsewhere, b**stard that Aggie was, Rufus gave him a lot of depth.

And by god he was sexy.

[peach]

Yes indeed, very nice legs too, might I add. Everyone looked completely bored, and the special effects were awful and not convincing at all. Ru does give it the old cocllege try though, he gets a A for effort, that and looking quite nice too.