# I nearly shot popcorn out my nose, and it's "Troy"'s fault **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 22, 2004, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762 "2004-03-22T20:17:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![partlycloudy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/partlycloudy/32/3114_2.png) [@partlycloudy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/partlycloudy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/21 "2004-03-23T01:10:24Z")
I think _Troy_ looks like it’s gonna be pretty darn good. And I have no objections to watching Mr. Aniston running around in a mini-skirt. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/22 "2004-03-23T01:30:30Z")
> [@FilmGeek](#): > > My only comment was, after hearing Pitt speak: > > “Achilles was American?” Would you rather they find an authentic Phthian? I think that would be a bit difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_Ellis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@Michael\_Ellis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_Ellis)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/23 "2004-03-23T01:30:54Z")
Meanwhile I’m annoyed that Jennifer Connelly isn’t playing Helen. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/24 "2004-03-23T01:31:05Z")
I’m certain I’m going to hate the movie (yes, it is a classics student purist thing) but I will be there opening night. I’m SO PLEASED with the casting so far! Brad Pitt has real manly beauty, and he’s a good actor. Orlando Bloom is the best pretty-boy archer I can think of offhand. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/25 "2004-03-23T01:40:03Z")
> [@LaurAnge](#): > > Orlando Bloom is the best pretty-boy archer I can think of offhand. So then, shouldn’t he be Teucer? ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/26 "2004-03-23T01:43:51Z")
> [@Captain Amazing](#): > > So then, shouldn’t he be Teucer? Well, Paris is an archer too, it’s his arrow that eventually kills Achilles, IIRC. And no one is as pretty as Paris. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/27 "2004-03-23T01:51:44Z")
Funny, Brad Pitt is what sold me on the movie. Hearing he was starring put the movie into the “must-see” category. He’s a damned good actor in general, and a very convincing bad-ass when the role calls for it. Plus, he’s incredibly good looking, which, I understand, was a very big deal to the Greeks. What more do you need for Achilles? Those of you who have problems with his casting, who do you think could do a better job? ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/28 "2004-03-23T02:16:28Z")
I think he will do fine. Pitt that is. I’ve liked his picks for years, and would love to see him due the Piker\* accent as Achilles. Heeee. Now, that would be entertainment. \*With apologies to Kal. ---
**Author:** ![Natroga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85f322/32.png) [@Natroga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Natroga)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/29 "2004-03-23T02:29:59Z")
Oh, I am going to see it. No doubt about that. I was strangely excited about this movie since the first time I heard about it. Might however be my attraction to all things Greek. Which probably means I will be really, really disappointed. And on a purely shallow note: Even though I couldn’t care less about Brad Pitt or Orlando Bloom, men in skirts (and armor) is always good. If these men happen to be Eric Bana (Hector) and Sean Bean (Odysseus), well, bonus! But I must confess that I nicknamed Achilles “Da Brad” the first time I saw the trailer… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/30 "2004-03-23T03:16:23Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Those of you who have problems with his casting, who do you think could do a better job? Hrmmm. I just have trouble seeing Brad Pitt as the Nasty Mcbadass of Nasty Mcbadasses, though he’ll be able to pull off the sulking in his tent thing really well. It’s so hard to find good badasses nowadays. And Pitt’s a little too pretty for me, there needs to be some grittiness. Russell Crowe, maybe. He put _Gladiator_ up on his shoulders and carried it home. Hugh Jackman, maybe. Check out [this picture](http://www.imdb.com/gallery/ss/0338526/Ss/0338526/VHOSLG_VHBTS15Medium.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Jackman,%20Hugh) from _Van Helsing_, then lose the crossbow. Sean Bean? I know he’s already in it. **GMRyujin** Haus favorite Adrian Paul (my pick for Young Roland from Dark Tower) was the favorite nominee around the apartment. You know, I thought up Bruce Campbell as a goofy pick, but I like the idea. Put 10 pounds of muscle on him and he’d be kinda goofy looking, but I think he could do it. Give him a chain saw, too. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/31 "2004-03-23T03:29:52Z")
No fair saying Bruce Campbell! No matter what the role or who’s playing, Bruce is _always_ a better pick. You could be talking about _The Hours_ and say, “Who would’ve been better as Virginia Woolf: Nicole Kidman or Bruce Campbell?” and Bruce Campbell would still be the correct answer. Anyway, I don’t think Greek heros should be gritty. They’re supposed to embody the physical ideal, both in terms of ability and appearance. And Achilles is supposed to be the greatest of all Greek heros: the ideal of the ideal. He needs to be both buff and beautiful, and Pitt fits the bill perfectly. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/32 "2004-03-23T03:43:11Z")
“It’s a trick. Get a spear.” I see that point, but I also know that on a battlefield, if they see a pretty guy, it’s gonna become a personal quest to mess up his pretty face. But then again, he’s immortal. But does that mean he can’t have scars? Pitt’s just a little too lean for me. In the trailer I saw, he looked kinda like Travolta in _Battlefield Earth_. This is why I love the Dope. My girlfriend and I have spent the past 30ish minutes talking about this. ---
**Author:** ![Morelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Morelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morelin)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/33 "2004-03-23T03:52:41Z")
And I still say Pitt is much too fair(hair and skin) to be playing a Greek. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/34 "2004-03-23T04:24:13Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > 1 Is Pitt really that poor a choice for the role? Or is it you just don’t like him overall? Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t Achilles supposed to be really young, like 19 or so? His mother had him hiding with maidens, so he couldn’t have been too old. Also, wasn’t part of the conflict between him and Agamemnon due to the fact that Agamemnon, being older and commander of the Greeks, tried to boss around Achilles, who was way younger but a better fighter? ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/35 "2004-03-23T04:35:15Z")
Huh, I thought Pitt was a great choice. He’s a great actor with an amazing body, who could ask for anything more? ---
**Author:** ![Kaitlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/73ab20/32.png) [@Kaitlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaitlyn)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/36 "2004-03-23T05:48:49Z")
While I have no problem with Pitt as Achilles, I personally would have cast Christian Bale. He’s good-looking, a convincing badass (see _Equilibrium_), and closer to the age and look I imagine for Achilles. ---
**Author:** ![DataZak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@DataZak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DataZak)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/37 "2004-03-23T06:07:24Z")
> [@easy e](#): > > Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t Achilles supposed to be really young, like 19 or so? His mother had him hiding with maidens, so he couldn’t have been too old. Also, wasn’t part of the conflict between him and Agamemnon due to the fact that Agamemnon, being older and commander of the Greeks, tried to boss around Achilles, who was way younger but a better fighter? Those details are of little importance to Hollywood. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/38 "2004-03-23T06:44:15Z")
> [@LaurAnge](#): > > Well, Paris is an archer too, it’s his arrow that eventually kills Achilles, IIRC. And no one is as pretty as Paris. I remember reading in a kid’s mythology book (which these days I realize was heavily watered down, but anyway) that Achilles was killed by a scorpion sting on his heel, not by an arrow. Or was that Orion? ---
**Author:** ![Rex\_Fenestrarum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rex_fenestrarum/32/7265_2.png) [@Rex\_Fenestrarum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rex_Fenestrarum)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/39 "2004-03-23T06:52:49Z")
> [@Aesiron](#): > > Brad Pitt is an okay choice in my mind. He may be a pretty boy but anyone that denies his acting ability either hasn’t seen \*12 Monkeys \* or _Fight Club_ or is just in denial. He’ll never be Ian McKellan, obviously, but he’s still one of the better actors of the past decade. Hear hear!! Don’t forget _Snatch_ either! The man can act. Although I always imagined someone “beefier” in the role, I’m so glad it’s not The Rock or Vin Diesel or someone else who can’t act themselves out of a paper bag! ---
**Author:** ![Beauty\_Personified](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Beauty\_Personified](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beauty_Personified)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2004, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762/40 "2004-03-23T07:09:03Z")
> [@GMRyujin](#): > > Russell Crowe, maybe. He put _Gladiator_ up on his shoulders and carried it home. Hugh Jackman, maybe. Check out [this picture](http://www.imdb.com/gallery/ss/0338526/Ss/0338526/VHOSLG_VHBTS15Medium.jpg?path=pgallery&path_key=Jackman,%20Hugh) from _Van Helsing_, then lose the crossbow. Sean Bean? I know he’s already in it. Does anybody else have problems with gallery pictures at the IMDB not loading? 😕 This is the second time I’ve followed a link there, and all the images on the page load except the subject photo. Any help? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-nearly-shot-popcorn-out-my-nose-and-its-troy-s-fault/235762.md?page=3)