Review of The Trojan Women (1971) by George M — 22 Mar 2014
The film is unsuccesful in many ways and is flawed; it is mostly the rythm that suffers as the tragic mode/style of talking doesn't match the 'naturalistic' cinematic art. Cacoyannis tries to bring some cinematic effects as equivalents to the play's stylized structure (such as the choral section with the montage of the faces of Trojan women as a way to evoke ritualistic effects) but not all of them succeed.
I would say that it fails because of that: looking for equivalents in film language for another language (that of ancient Greek theatre) is the problem, instead of trying to reimagine from scratch the play in cinematic terms as Pasolini did for his own adaptations of tragedies.
Yet, despite its flaws, the film manages to be really powerful at times. This is thanks to the text itself as well as the masterful performances, especially by Katharine Hepburn as Hecuba and Vanessa Redgrave as Andromache.
It definitely deserves to be seen as it can be rewarding for those who have some patience to spare.
This review of The Trojan Women (1971) was written by George M on 22 Mar 2014.
The Trojan Women has generally received positive reviews.
Was this review helpful?
