What is it about?
Using two films based on Greek myth - namely Brad Pitt’s performance as Achilles in Troy (Wolfgang Petersen 2004) and Dwayne Johnson’s performance in Hercules (Brett Ratner 2014) - this chapter argues that the star bodies that enact cinematic ancient world warriors in the contemporary digital era signify a physical authenticity that must be anxiously asserted outside the film. The digital sword-and-sandal film revels in its CGI spectacles of ancient warfare yet must work harder, both textually and paratextually, to emphasize an authenticity around its contemporary star bodies.
Featured Image
Photo by Simone Pellegrini on Unsplash
Why is it important?
This chapter examines the under-examined dynamics between the physical star performance and digital effects in the sword-and-sandal film genre. It will be of interest to film scholars of genre, stardom and effects, well as those working in classical reception and adaptation.
Perspectives
Very pleased to be included in Konstantinos P. Nikoloutsos' edited anthology Brill's Companion to Ancient Greek and Roman Warfare on Film for Part 3: The Leading Men of Celluloid Armies, which spans the 1930s, 1950s and then finally in my chapter, the digital era of the early 2000s. Indeed, earlier star performances in the analogue era very much inform the star discourse and anxieties that circulate in the digital era, so I recommend reading these chapters in relation to one another.
Dr Djoymi Baker
RMIT University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Brad’s Biceps and Dwayne’s Delts: Stardom as Physicality and Digital Spectacle in Troy (2004) and Hercules (2014), December 2023, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004686823_007.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
