Well, for my contribution, no she's not a perfect actress, but then many of them weren't e.g. Theseus's accent had a distinct twang in it. But the movie was made for TV, so some allowances have to be made. Also, when an actor's performance is not great, you also need to look at the script and the direction. There were quite a few script failings, as is usually the case in TV minis, especially sword and sandal epics.
But the overall concept was good and, in the context of the character, Guillory was good. Her childlike qualities suited the part and you could see why the men adored her. That's the important thing. Was she the most beautiful woman in the world? Well, who is? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The important thing is that they thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world and the story developed this concept well. And in the context of the world 4,000 years ago, had Guillory been there she may well have been the most beautiful woman. Who knows what the world was like then.
And she is not bad looking and, yes, she has a superb backside. Pity we didn't see the rest. For the record, I think she is better looking than Pamela Anderson and a FAR better actress. The comparisons are comical.
reply
share
LordDudley
20 years ago
I agree with you, johnboz69. It was a TV miniseries for pete's sake. Their budget alone would have had an effect on what they could do and how much. The cast was okay, I've seen much worse, and Sienna Guillory was fine. Everyone has their own notion of beauty. Nefertiti and Rahab were supposedly the most beautiful women of their eras, too. So who's to say? But can you imagine any woman measuring up to the ideal of what Helen looked like (if we even knew what she looked like)?
Was watching HELEN OF TROY a total waste of my time? No, because I've been fascinated with the Trojan War ever since reading Edith Hamilton's Greek Mythology, later the Iliad and other versions of the story. It's probably my all time favorite legend. So although realizing its failings, I still enjoyed watching it. I think seeing the story through Helen and Paris was a good way to tell it. The film maker will show it from a different perspective in TROY, and I'm sure I'll enjoy it too!
reply
share
dharmabum
20 years ago
This was posted a long time ago, but I have to defend Stellan Skarsgård as Theseus. Swedish is his first language. Yes, his accent had a bit of a Swedish sound - he used his normal English speaking voice as far as I could tell. But accent or no, the man is one of the finest actors working in movies today - check out his work in Breaking the Waves, and his contributions to Scandanavian film are extremely impressive. I should also point out that I didn't hear much in the ways of Greek accents anyway. I'm quite certain Helen didn't speak with that lovely English accent, charming as it was.
Unfortunately, after some strong early support in movies like Good Will Hunting, he seems to be getting relegated to mediocre thrillers and TV movies in his Hollywood career.
reply
share