The Trojan Women project.

A comparison between the film (1971) and the play (ca. 415 BCE)

In this review I will first introduce both the movie and Euripides’ play separately in
order to bring to the forefront their similarities and differences. Then, I will make a comparison
of the two together, what they accomplished both at the time they were made and what they
mean to us today. During the writing of both pieces, war was ravaging the land. I believe it is
the need of a play (or movie) that speaks of the sufferings of those not soldiers, that brings to
birth these two classic pieces of art.

Trojan Women (415 BCE)

I) Plot, action and overall design

Euripides wrote this play ca 415 BCE, when Athens was suffering the worst part of the
Peloponnesian War. The Athenians have brought much suffering to both the conquered and
their allies, and the failure of Sicilian campaign, to come during this year, hangs over the shifty
will of the Democracy. Here Euripides speaks of the horrors of war expressed upon those who
never wielded a sword. Very cleverly, the writer does not enter Troy at all, he initiates us
outside of the walls, where a camp for the women has been laid and Hecuba herself lies in utter
desperation. Even before that however, Poseidon and Athena have an interesting conversation;
Ajax has offended the goddess by forcing Cassandra into her temple. Athena now pleads to
Poseidon in order to make the Greeks suffer on their way home; a very interesting ending in a
beginning, a reminder to honor the Gods, or pay.

The main plot points occurred as the main women of the Trojans make their
appearances, culminating in the burial of Astyanax:

1. Hecuba’s appearance and monologue- She distracts us from the main plot of Troy’s
destruction to bring us down in to the world of suffering these women must now suffer.

2. Cassandra’s murderous will- (After Thalthybius arrives) She shows us that only a grim fate
awaits Agammemnon on his returning home; whether by her own hand, or some other, he will
die.

3. Andromache’s appearance- Andromache announces the death of Polyxena to Hecuba but

expresses hope in her child, Astyanax. These hopes are dashed by unwilling Thalthybius, who
announces the decree of death upon the princess’ son.

4. Helen’s trial- Helen appears, dressed unbecoming of a woman in mourning, and pleads with
Menelaus to spare her life. Hecuba retorts with a prosecutor’s argument
5. Astyanax’s funeral- The final hope of Troy is buried.

II) Illustrative Passages

Euripides writes to show the Athenians that cruelty is never excused, women should not suffer
the fate of men of war, and that a worthy enemy, should be respected, not killed or thrown from
walls. The worthiness of the Trojan women is ever shown:

509-510- “Of all who walk in bliss call no one happy yet, until the man is dead.” (Hecuba to the
audience)
632-633- “Child, no. No life, no light is any kind of death, since death is nothing, and in life the
hopes live still. (Hecuba to Andromache)
718- “I thank your courtesy –unless your news be really good.” (Andromache reacts to
Thalthybius’ reticence to give her the orders the Greeks have commanded him to bring)
764- “Greeks, your cleverness is simply barbarity.” (Andromache laments her son’s imminent
death by suggestion of Odysseus)
1008-1009- “You worked hard: not to make yourself a better woman, but to make sure always to
be on the winning side.” (Hecuba responds to Helen’s defense of repeated escapes)
1190-1191-“Here lies a little child the Argives killed, because they were afraid of him.” That? The
epitaph of Greek Shame.” (Hecuba laments over Astyanax, making up a possible epitaph for his
tomb)
1262- “Let loose the fire upon it. So with the citadel of Ilium broken to the ground we can take
leave of Troy, in gladness, and go home.” (Thalthybius expresses the thought of the troops; they
just want to go home after ten years of war, be rid of Troy, and forget the wrongs done.)

III) Central Characters

Hecuba- Wife of the deceased king of Troy Priam. Mother of Hector, Paris, Polyxena and
Cassandra and nine other children who also play a big part on the Iliad. With all of them now
gone, she stands alone in the march to slavery and sorrow.

Cassandra- One of the daughters of Hecuba. She has been chosen by Agamemnon to be his
bride despite the fact that she is both a priestess and utterly mad. Cassandra represents
vengeance in this play, she makes no secret of her plans to kill Agamemnon and make him pay
for his insult upon Troy and its Gods.

Andromache- The wife of Hector, unrelated by blood to Hecuba. She represents the future of
Troy through Astyanax, but when the boy is killed, she submits to the will of her new masters
without a fight, nor want of revenge; she seems too broken for that.
Thalthybius- The gentle messenger of the Greeks; he seems assigned to this task due to his
previous interaction with Troy. He is partial towards the women in the encampment, especially
Hecuba herself. His gentle presence seems to meagerly ease the women’s worries. He represents
Greek reason at its best.

The Chorus and army cannot be ignored; their mere presence makes decisions.

IV) Themes and Presentation

Euripides writes in a time of war. A time that has seen Athens and its representatives
commit crimes that should not have occurred. The massacre at Melos (416 BCE) is one such
example. Driven by honor and standing to the end until betrayed, the Melians give themselves
up, upon which the Athenians kill all the men and sell the women and children into slavery.
The suffering of those women may have been much like the suffering of the ones in this play.
Why? Seems to ask the playwright, would you kill men who stood loyal to the enemy until the
end? Wouldn’t they be better if we make them friends and partake of their loyalty?

Euripides also seem to recall the initiation of the Peloponnesian War; Thebes, together
with Sparta, raises Plataea to the ground on the sole basis of their loyalty to Athens. One
wonders if Euripides felt the Athenians were simply going down the irrational path of their
enemies.

In order to present his ideas, Euripides’ poetry brings us to wars of old. Perhaps written
in Homeric dialect due to the story it represents, the Homeric writing would have connected the
Athenians to a past they needed to recognize not only for its great duels, but perhaps also its
great cruelties. Not falling prey to the tiredness of war seems a key issue raised in this play;
when men do, terrible things happen.

V) Interpretation

Euripides seems to be an ancient Liberal who did not agree with how the war was being
conducted by the πόλις. His characters show moral upwardness, in the part of the Trojan
women; and moral decadence, in the part of the men of Troy. Except for the understanding
herald Thalthybius, whom we may assumed may not have participated much in the war, who
shows mercy in the face of bad news.

This play simply shows how men tired of war become dangerous to those they have
conquered, avoid the use of reason to deal with problems, and figure that after all the killing is
done, a little more matters little. Does Odysseus push for Astyanax’s death because he is afraid
of him? Perhaps it is because he refuses to allow his children to go through another ten year war
like he did. Killing Astyanax, though unfair, stops the cycle of vengeance; no longer can the son
of the hero grow up to become a threat to Greece. Sadly enough, war cannot be averted, Greece
will fight, the East will invade, Greece will fight again. The killing of a child (like that of
Iphigenia) only gave peace but for a fleeting moment.
Trojan Women (1971)

I) Screen Play

The screen play is based on Euripides’ “Trojan women” as translated by Edith Hamilton.
Edith Hamilton is one of the great Greek scholars and translators of our time and her
magnificent translation resonates across the movie scenes. Loyal to the play to the end, the
movie screen play is littered with Greek style. While the chorus and soldiers are ever present,
no more than three actors are ever on screen together.

Mihalis Kakogiannis writes the final concoction of these three great minds. His
understanding of Greece and its plays, accented by the translation of Ms. Hamilton gives us a
screen play much like the poetic, Homeric speech of old and captivates the soul while rattling
the mind.

II) Visual Design

Cinematography- Alfio Contini

Film Editing- Mihalis Kakogiannis

Despite the lack of fighting and the manly heroes of other films, this movie reads of
sword and sandals all along. However, its uncommon lack of fights brings in the least dealt
with problem in the ancient world, the aftermath of war and how it affects the state of mind of
men, women and children.

The movie begins with a frame sequence, smoke and ruins fill the landscape. Women are
being dragged out of the smoke into the scene and their children are taken away. We soon learn
that only Astyanax remains with his mother, but this will soon we corrected as he is killed by
being thrown from the high Trojan walls. The movie ends in full circle; the women are led into
the smoke, never to see troy again.

During the movie, the sun is ever present shining upon the end of a war too long to bear
by so many. Little times does the weather seem to be bad or unfavorable, and the land, while
having little, does not seem as unforgiving and desolate as it should.

The actors portrayed extremely well, mostly with close up shots. Medium shots are only
chosen when surprise has come, or the unexpected. Many times the messenger Thalthybius is
shown in middle shots to show his hand gestures at the desperation of his messages, or at the
much needed emphasis of his command. Face close ups are seen when monologues are made,
but also the film plays with face shots when realization comes. First to the Chorus in minute 13,
then Cassandra during her final speech on 33 and Hecuba on her final words in minute 98 are
some great examples.

III) Sound Design/Music

Sound editor- Alfred Cox

Music- Mikis Theodorakis
Special Effects- Basilio Cortijo

The sound is very typical of sword and sandals films. Despite the lack of many soldiers and
war, the war drums are heard almost constantly, the clink of metal is unmistakable, and the
cries of the women ring still in our memory both past and present. The sound of fire,
lamentation and men, cry still as if we were reminiscing of the war of Troy, but only in our
minds. We are introduced in a post-traumatic stress disorder world. And we become part of it
through its sounds.

IV) Casting

Katherine Hepburn (Hecuba). An established star and master of the art; she represents old
Hecuba rather well and her maternal figure plays the part when Hecuba suffers because of the
death of Polyxena, as well as the rapture of Andromache and Cassandra. She commands respect
also, which eases her into the role of queen.

Vanessa Redgrave (Andromache). This relatively young actress is beautiful, striking, and her
scenes are full of emotion and truth. Her scream once he finds that Astyanax has to die is horror
to the outermost. I found this words online (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067881/quotes),
perhaps from the screen play, which describe that agony when she hears the news: “[silence.
Then slowly, as if from the marrow of her bones, the scream comes --- wild, scaringly, rising
from the dark roots of sound beyond words]”. Ms. Redgrave does a great interpretation.

Genevieve Bujold (Cassandra). The younger and even more beautiful still is played by this great
actress. With her beauty it is easy to see why Menelaus would have chosen her. Despite the
obvious risks an insane woman for a bed partner brings.

Irene Papas (Helen) is simply magnificent as usual. Her role is surprisingly short yet extremely
important. Her obvious beauty and powerful eyes depict a Helen full of knowledge of her own
beauty and the fact that she only needs to make excuses for men to listen to her.

Brian Blessed (Thalthybius). Is both powerful of voice and strength. He is tall and handsome,
but also kind and full of heart. His character represents the Greek reason at its best, but it can do
nothing, except give words of comfort, to those whom he brings sore news. I love his character
and remember him from many other movies like the Story of David (1976) and Flash Gordon
(1980). His voice, a trademark of his character, is well known in Europe.
V) Direction

Mihalis Kakogiannis brings to us the world of Greece as he understands it, and it is an

amazing perspective. Although this movie is not shot on location in Greece as Iphigenia will be
later, the director still takes us to Spain in order to show the broken walls of an imaginary Troy.
While this is a more internationally accented movie, in terms of those who participated,
Kakogiannis still takes us back to the poetry of Euripides and the lives of those written about in
the Iliad. His personal vision is on the mark, a perfected version of this vision will be seen in
Iphigenia.

Final Words

All in all, both film and play speak of the unspeakable horror in the aftermath of war.
We must not ignore that besides the blood, turmoil and suffering of conflict, there are always
those who suffer when they should not be suffering; innocents, whose murders we justify in
preventing a future war that cannot be prevented, only changed. Trojan Women in the end
speaks of those worthy of respect that never receive it, and it speaks to us directly, the silent
audience, to make us sensitive to them. It is men at their worst we have to be careful of.
Hecuba’s final words in the film added by Kakogiannis come out thus: “I think those that are
gone care little how they are buried. It is we, the living. Our vanity.”