Merciful Zeus!

[changeling]

I just got back from seeing Troy.

...

There are no words. No. Words. Don't get me started. (Except for the part where there will be a full-blown rant when and if I can summon the effort)

For a starter, what the fuck was with Agamemnon being killed during the sacking of Troy?!?!?!? Seriously, WHAT. THE. FUCK. The whole purpose of the Atridan family curse was that Agamemnon gets back from winning a war and his wife kills him because she's been sleeping with his brother, Agisthus, and Agamemnon killed their daughter for a lousy wind to Troy. It's called dramatic fuckin' irony, filmmakers. Sheesh.

Another side point, what the fuck was with the pronunciation of Menelaus? They pronounced it "Menelous", to rhyme with spouse, whereas I've done Classics, and only ever heard it pronounced Meh-neh-lay-us. Even my copy of the Iliad, with pronunciation in the back, agrees with me.

Of course, the hardest part of this entry is selecting the icon. Do I choose "Where are my black-hulled ships, you bastards?", "It's not a proper Ancient Greek movie unless it has fighting skeletons in it" (See? I knew this movie would suck in November of last year) or "Classical Geek"*? It's so hard to decide.


The biggest problem with blogging is that when things get really interesting I'm too exhausted to write about it. - Neil Gaiman
Amen, brother. A-fuckin-men.

*I also made this icon in November of last year, and I've only just noticed that I unintentionally made a pun. Classical Geek. Classical Greek. Geddit? Wow, 'cause it's taken me six months.

I wrote a little bit over my 300 word thingie for my novel today. I am doing well.

Comments

[scott-wells.livejournal.com]

It's called dramatic fuckin' irony, filmmakers. Sheesh.

Ah, Irony. I heard it was banished from Hollywood along when they insituted the mandatory happy ending law. Irony now slouches around back alleys prostituting itself to 'mature' comic book writers and eeking out a living among embittered college grads....

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I know. *cries* Poor irony. I miss it so much.

[cabell.livejournal.com]

Speaking as someone who loved The Flies (Sartre's version of Orestes's return to Argos, which kind of DEPENDS on Agamemnon making it back to get murdered by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus) so much that she made a SOUNDTRACK for it, I am a-fucking-ppalled.

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I really love Euripides' work, and he doesn't always go with the "official line" - for example, he gets Helen to bugger off to Egypt, because he thinks (like many people) that there was no way that the Trojans would have let themselves be beseiged for 10 years because of a girl.

But I love the characters of Clytemnestra and Electra, and with Agamemnon dying in Troy, their grief and tragedy is written off.

I've also read a couple of books by Kerry Greenwood, Cassandra and Electra which are really interesting stories that she bothered to research, and not just with the Iliad and the Odyssey. She wrote one other in the "Delphic Women" series, Medea, and it's really good, too.

Thank fuck they haven't tried to make a movie of that recently.

[fin.livejournal.com]

I dunno... maybe they wanted to put a "spin" on the storyline to give a few surprises for the people who think they know what's coming...

But yes, I agree, that really is appalling... now I don't feel so bad about having to wait until *after* my thesis is finished before seeing it...

Incidentally, there has been more discussion

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I dunno... maybe they wanted to put a "spin" on the storyline to give a few surprises for the people who think they know what's coming...

But yes, I agree, that really is appalling... now I don't feel so bad about having to wait until *after* my thesis is finished before seeing it...

Incidentally, there has been more discussion <a href="http://www.livejournal.com/users/sajee/18562.html" here</a> concerning the film...

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

That's not an excuse for anything. Really.

It's the sort of thing where I really want to read The Iliad, The Odyssey, perhaps The Aeniad and maybe assorted plays, and then write a big fuck-off essay about it.

You can take the girl out of Classics, but you can't take Classics out of the girl.

[billradish.livejournal.com]

I also made this icon in November of last year, and I've only just noticed that I unintentionally made a pun. Classical Geek. Classical Greek. Geddit? Wow, 'cause it's taken me six months.

...I thought that was intentional, way back when you made it. o.o

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I got accused of deliberately punning in the writing exercise I wrote in novel class on Monday, where Lesley talks to a tree spirit. I don't think in puns generally, so they just tend to be happy coincidences.

[billradish.livejournal.com]

<3 So in other words...I get it from my mummy.

*pokes* I have your butterfingers. Could you e-mail me to make sure I have your address right?

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

*giggles*

...
...
...
OOOOOOOOH! I shall do so interphrastically!

[billradish.livejournal.com]

I left a note about it on a post in my journal, but forgot to ask for your e-mail. And I don't think you saw it anyway. =P

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

Yes, my social life has been out of control recently. Ergo, am very far behind on flist. Sorry 'bout that.

[billradish.livejournal.com]

Nah. I don't expect everyone to keep up with their flists. oO I just figured I should mention it here, since you seemed to miss the post.

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

Well, normally I'm better than this. But I usually go on in the evening, and so far I've had Friday-Saturday in Daylesford (no internet access); Sunday out seeing Liam's play and not getting home until late; Monday working on my novel and editing assignment (but got online briefly); Tuesday Steph was over, so we sat up and talked; Wednesday stayed out, drank, played pool and sang karaoke before crashing at Jess O's; and Thursday was out until 3:30 or so watching Troy. It's been a crazy week.

[billradish.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a fun one, though. =)

[darketherdream.livejournal.com]

I haven't watched it yet, but I clicked anyway, I get the feeling I won't watch it. Because...Agammemnon dies during the sacking? What...WHERE'S THE TRAGEDY?

That's so *ridiculous*.

And with the Menelaus thing. I've always pronounced it as you do, though I always find a wrong way of pronouncing things, so I'm never sure of it. Yesterday my lecturer prnounced it menalous, so I'm terribly confused. I'll keep pronouncing it my way, it sounds prettier...

honestly...what were they thinking...

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I know. I KNOW!

[serizawa3000.livejournal.com]

Well, um... what else did they screw up?

If memory serves me right, Achilles kills Hector (and descrates his corpse), Priam kills Achilles (AAAK arrow to the heel!)... there's a wooden horse, and ALMOST EVERYONE DIES.

And I presume we don't get to see the gods looking down upon all this...

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

For a start, Agamemnon survives the war. His wife kills him when he returns for killing their daughter Iphigenia for a wind.

[serizawa3000.livejournal.com]

Oh, yeah, that. That I knew.

That and Agamemnon was played by Sean Connery in Time Bandits, and though he and Clytemnestra never exchanged a word during the Mycenae sequence in the movie, you just KNEW something was up...

Is Odysseus even in it?

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

He is. Played by Sean Bean. Isn't in it enough for me, though. I'm fond of Odysseus.

[serizawa3000.livejournal.com]

Yep. Now his story I'm really familiar with.

I figure the big deal is seeing the likes of Brad Pitt in the hoplite armor... though of course the helmet must need come off...