User reviews

I so badly wanted this to be good, but the first episode , is a warning that even makes Cassandra redundant. I found the acting wooden, the storyline a mess, the script dreadful. The two main characters Helen and Paris, devoid of any charisma, thus the very idea of a 1000 ships sailing to rescue her laughable. The least of my worries based on this first episode, is the casting of Achilles , and others . How on earth can this second rate production, hit our T V screens , when one recalls TROY from a decade ago, perhaps using George Martin for advice might have saved time and money !!!!

We struggled through the first episode and I do not think we shall be watching any more.

I'll disregard all the politics and hate going on here and just say that whilst I thought the acting and the sets were first class, the whole concept was lost to me. I hated the flash-forward-backs. These added nothing except confusion.

I gave it 3/10 and I tink I was being very generous.

There are boring and useless scenes and the characters are unrealistic and offending to Greek culture and identity. Putting a black colored man as Achilles is just offending me as a Greek. It's not about racism but about realism, it's like putting an Indian playing Hitler and so forth. The actor is fine but not fitting as Achilles.

Did the writers and producers ever read the Iliad? One of the most iconic and important stories of love and war in ALL written history? Terrible terrible writing, wooden acting, historical facts all wrong, inventions being portrayed that were CENTURIES away from being invented... Horrible!

I just couldn't believe what I was watching in Netflix. This series is so wrong, so outrageously disrespectful to Homer's immortal Illiad that I had to write this review. The directors-writers-producers-whatever and whoever they were (-like a gang-) seem to have deliberately chosen to disfigure the masterpiece - perhaps the highest work of literature ever created. A cultural murder was, apparently, perpetrated in this "Troy-The Fall of a City". Just about every actor is miscast, starting with Paris/Alexander himself who does not look any bit "in love " with Helen at all! As he prepares to go back to Troy I got a feeling that Helen hid herself in that coffin out of boredom, not really for love - neither she, nor he seems to have been taken by the turmoil of an intense passion. Paris is such a modern boy ! Does he like soccer? Videogames? And Helen, though quite pretty, could not possibly be "...the most beautiful woman of the world" promised by Aphrodite. Ah!... Aphrodite promised. But didn't deliver... A certain discomfort invades the viewer from the start as he is confronted with so much bad acting, bad casting, bad timing in the events. Sorry to say that - but it MUST be said - Achilles SHOULD be someone hairy and blond - like a lion, as Homer explicitly wrote in his story. Achilles was "golden" like a lion! Nestor, an important character in the Illiad looks just like a street dweller that I see everyday somewhere in Rio de Janeiro where I live. Why this ? BBC managed to offend Homer, the Greeks, and all of humanity who read this immortal tale of war and love. AS some reviewers already noted, this awful TV series made the movie "Troy" (which contains many mistakes) with Brad Pitt, Eric Bana and lovely Diane Kruger shine like a jewel forever!!!!

As a Greek and a thinking capable woman, this show offended me in the depths of my soul. First of all, what the heck was that story with Paris? Secondly, wtf was wrong with Cassandra? Cassandra was not a child when Paris was born and she couldn't foresee things as a child because she got that "charisma" AFTER Apollo cursed her for not sleeping with him. And I'm 100% sure Apollo was no paedo. Then, ok, as a Greek I can accept black Achilles or a black Zeus in the name of diversity but I can't accept Menelaos walking around with an umbrella (a bloody crinoline, not just a simple umbrella). And in Greece people didn't walk around with umbrellas because of the sun, generally. We don't take protection from the sun and we never did. Also wtf with the Indian king and silk room in Sparta? The known world for Greeks at this time was Minor Asia and perhaps black sea. It took us almost 7 centuries until Alexander the Great found out what was beyond the known world. A redhead Aphrodite, seriously people, a redhead? Red hair in ancient Greece was considered barbaric and they even made Scythian slaves to die their hair black (seriously, this was more offending than the black Zeus or Achilles). Naming spices from East? What East, which spices????? Cumin and turmeric and women paint their nails with "liquid" gold? We're talking about bronze age, ok maybe the most advanced bronze age in Europe, but still it's bronze age. The only thing I liked as a Greek was the depiction of Helen, finally no more blonde, blue eyed, Dinaric type actresses. But what was wrong with all of her dresses and hairstyles? She looked like she came out of Vogue magazine where the main theme was feathers and leather, how to wear them this season. Probably the costumes we had in highschool were more true to the originals and better sewn than those they wear in the show Literally, with 500 euros you could find better costumes and better scenery. Palaces are almost empty, people eat in floors (uhm, we didn't do that usually, that's an eastern habit). And finally the story. Ok, BBC look, you can't take Romeo and Juliet and make something OUT of it, you can adapt it, you can give it a certain "color" but you can't forge it. And you cannot do the same with Iliad. You cannot change the story and the events, you cannot kill people (poor Ifigenia never died and placed as a bloody mess on coals) and most certainly you cannot bring disgrace in one of the most important Epic Poems of humanity. This is blasphemy, this is hybris , this is by far the worst adaptation of Iliad I've ever seen. It hurt my eyes, my mind and my soul, as a human being and a Greek. I don't know who wasted money on that but if you ever read this, ask for your money back, it was a fiasco. And finally, what's wrong with the women on this show?? Uhm, hello, we used to be the victims back then, we didn't shout to our parents and most certainly we couldn't encounter our fiancé before wedding, we didn't had a tongue like Hermione because this would mean we wouldn't have tongues at all. If you have a lot of free time and you want to watch this, just don't. Read the original version instead which is more than enough.

Why such a title for my review you may ask.

Well I am Greek and apparently it's only racist and deemed to be cultural appropriation when you switch the color of a historic character if he's not white. Never mind the fact that the whole thing was horrible in every way possible.

The Iliad is a historic masterpiece, and with the story fully laid out for them, the writers managed to butcher it.

NOT RECOMMENDED.

Laghfably anacronistic, badly directed, badly played. What a mess; and yet it was made by professionals who should have known better..It's a mystery. Easily one of the worst flicks in recent filn history.

4/6/18. I watched the first episode. That was enough to tell me it wasn't going to be worth my time to watch 7 more. Sub-par acting didn't help. I love movies about ancient Greece, but this would have been a waste of time. Could have worked better as a 4-episode mini-series, if done right. Or, just watch 2004's Brad Pitt's Troy. No way you can improve on that one.

It's called an adaptation for a reason. It is a retelling of an incredible story. What would be the point of creating a show that copies previous adaptations or a page by page telling? It's supposed to be a little different because it's a story being told from different perspectives. I really don't think it was that bad, considering that there are inconsistencies and huge variations from the original story. As a viewer, this show is simply to be treated as an adapted art form, and nothing more. People are taking the changes way too seriously. The acting wasn't crazy amazing, but it gave a different perspective to a timeless story, which is what makes it worth giving it a go to watch. There's a reason it's called an adaptation, just saying. And this is coming from someone who is well educated and well versed in this topic as it is my area of study. Treat it as a stand-alone re-imagining, and maybe it has a real shot at being seen a little more positively.

"Lack of respect" my ass. Some can't stand classical material being worked for a modern audience because they can't browbeat and give the pretention of being special anymore. The Iliad hasn't survived for nearly three millennia because of those people but because for all that time people have been captivated by its story and characters.

When I started watching this, knowing the negativity from IMDB, I was waiting for it to become terrible so I could satisfy my curiosity and turn it off. That didn't happen and I ended up finishing it wanting more.

I love the Iliad and Homer. From the get-go it's clear this is not the Iliad because we are seeing mostly everything from the point of view of Paris, not Agamemnon or Achilles. There is no legendary shouting match between the "Lord of the Greeks" and the "Fast runner" or a confused and lonely Achilles calling out for his mother on the beach. These are great scenes and are a part of the incredible work of art that is the Iliad. It was clear to me that this series was not trying to be the Iliad, it was doing it's own take on great dramatic material- the same way HBO's Rome never tries to be Shakespeare's two great Roman plays but uses the same characters(Brutus, Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra). I think this series is in the same league as HBOs Rome, which again was a wonderful show.

Something suspicious is going on with IMDB's rating system and it's sad but I don't think it can be trusted anymore. Anytime an ambitious and good looking period drama with swords comes out its voted down into oblivion before it gets off the ground(recently Knightfall). Game of Thrones is certainly not without flaws. The first season is so exposition heavy and takes itself so seriously many times I was tempted to turn it off. I thought it was dull. As a lover of Greek drama, though, that's not what I would say here.

Thumbs down all you want

With all due deference to the multitude of apparent Homeric scholars out there, this is a pretty interesting interpretation of the classic tale. It's not fast paced. There's no CGI, much to the consternation of those looking for more flash than substance. The writing is not nearly as bad as has been presented. If you have the intelligence to follow along, you'll find a lot going on. The notions of free will and of destiny are interwoven in a lusty visual exposition that does take its time but hits a number of points. There's a solid attempt here at getting to the heart of these characters through dialogue rather than special effects. Unfortunately most of the reviewers here seem to want less of the former and more of the latter.

And yes Achilles is played by a black actor. But if you're having trouble with that, it's time to look in the mirror and confront the racist staring back at you - grow up.

That was 8 wasted hours of my life that I'll never get back. It wasn't total rubbishy, but pretty damn close.

I can live with the anachronisms since it's not a documentary, but the acting and paceing was just horrible. Most of the time I just sat with my phone checking my FB and instagram. Uncharismatic actors with poor directing.

Come to think of it, it was complete garbage.

Bad Acting Terrible Casting Awful storyline Horrible Filming Pitiful fighting scenes Rediculous Achilles Laughable plot Boring dialogue Pathetic production

Absolutely nothing good about the show. Even though I read the reviews after 3 episodes, I decided to continue and see why is it so terrible, and it delivered. I tried as hard as I can to find anything good about it but I constantly failed. I can't even begin to write what's wrong about the show because there's nothing right. I love the story The Iliad... but this show has successfully ruined every part of it. Even the most iconic scenes qre laughable. HORRIBLE HORRIBLE HORRIBLE SHOW

I made an account only to review this series. I'm a Greek, I love the creations of Homer and I know them in depth. I tried to watch every episode, but I can't continue after the 6th, and that with great effort. Watching the 1st and 2nd episode I thought it wasn't as bad as the majority said, but now I can safely say "IT IS A DISGRACE TO HUMANITY!". Awful script, awful battles (it's a battle story not a love one), awful acting, and above all the story has been changed dramatically. I would like to know if there is an unwritten law, that sais that movie producers, script makers, authors etc, to ALWAYS destroy the creations and the history of, especially non Anglo-Saxon, civilizations. Sadly, the movie industry has proven that it doesn't respect humanities cultural creations. Iliada is the first masterpiece of the western civilization and it deserves our respect.

So. ...where do i begin.... Acting: terrible Direction: terrible Script: terrible Pacing: terrible

The only redeeming feature was that they couldn't mention brexit

To be honest they should have just filmed a forest for an hour as it would be just as wooden as the acting.

*knocks man off horse* "hey......what are you doing......

I'll be brief, as I don't want want to waste as much time writing about this show as I did watching it. If (like me) you're a fan of both Ancient Greek history and myth, then don't watch this as you'll be disappointed. If you're a fan of Game of Thrones (also like me) and you're expecting something similar here, then again, don't watch, you'll be equally as disappointed! Avoid.

Script writers try to outdo Homer! Casting is PC crap. The premise of the Apple of Discord is just blown to hell ! It's a waste of data bytes and any film which may have been expanded! Edith Hamilton and other retellers of mythology have done a much better job.

It attracted a great deal of criticism, principally for its ethnically-neutral casting and 'deviations' from the 'historical' sources, specifically Homer's Iliad.

However, the Iliad as we have it, for there would have been many Iliads, coming as it did from an oral tradition told by many poets to many audiences over many centuries, spans just 54 days, at the near-end of what we are told was a ten-year siege, from the quarrel between Achilles and Agamemnon, to the funeral of Hector. The other sources we have - the flashbacks in The Odyssey, the Greek plays (the few, just 30, we have of hundreds lost), Virgil's Aeneid (Roman), Ovid (also Roman), the fragments of the Cyclic Epics, Eratosthenes, and other variable poetic accounts - are but a fragment, perhaps less than 5% of those stories, songs, poems that were actually written down.

If it took place at all, and I fancy there were a long series of wars, conflict and sieges rather than just one, and the archaeological evidence bears this out, it was in the late Bronze Age, say 12th century BCE. After the fall of the Mycenaean culture and the collapse of the other Greek city-states, maybe a century or so later, the art of writing was lost, and there was only the oral tradition , until circa the 8th century BCE when the Phoenicians reintroduced it to what we now call 'the Greek World'. What we now call Ancient Greek writing derives from the Phoenician alphabet. This is when, it is normally taken to be, when the Iliad and the Odyssey were written down. But, again, we don't know if this is the only text that was written down? Quite possibly there were several, perhaps many several, Iliads and Odysseys that were written down, but have all now been lost.

The city of Troy itself existed, and its ruins can be visited, near the town of Hisarlik in Anatolia, Turkey, not far from the Hellespont.

Personally I like the series. Despite knowing the story well, the material is mythically-malleable, and can continue to be told and retold, whether it's 2800 years later, or 2800 years from now.

Forced diversity.

• You just can't portrait Achilles as a black guy.
• Nestor could never look like this. (Read Homer's epic story first).
• Helen was the most beautiful woman in the world back then. Hallo!
• Acting is bad. I have no worse word.
• Paris was madly in love with Helen. Hallo!

Why don't you make a movie or series with a black George Washington or a black Winston Churchil. Or make one with a white Nelson Mandela and/or a white Martin Luther King. A black King Arthur would be great! Or a black Jesus... It would be desrespect. Right? Then why you continuosly abuse Greek Mythology/History? Brave new world...

Too many episodes to tell the story (it dragged at times - too many episodes to tell the story) and some pretty wooden acting (e.g., virtually no chemistry between Paris and Helen - this series will make anyone wonder why the Greeks bothered at all).

Still, a classic that everyone knows the ending to; thus, a binge worthy series for an evening (and into the wee hours of the morning) without too many surprises.

Confusing sets at times. You go from opulence to cheesy Viking looking Greek ships - the series Accountant must have stepped in at some time I suppose and put the spending breaks on - fewer episodes would have been better also for this reason.

I did like the Trojan horse, pretty day glow if you ask me but a good attempt at uniqueness.

Aside: Netflix Italia viewer here. Surprised at all the negative February reviews here considering it was just released a day or so ago (April 6). BBC must have upset a lot of people for some reason, oh well, it's the English you know.

I found the first episode excruciatingly boring but, in a fit of masochism, I watched it from start to finish. The BBC has managed to mangle a classic Greek tale and in doing so it has committed cultural appropriation. Now this is what I found inexcusable. The Brits have myths the BBC is welcome to take liberties with but the Iliad is not one of them. And we haven't even gotten to the black Achilles yet.