Mark Lewis Jones

A career con man sets his sights on a widow worth millions. As the two draw closer, what should have been another simple swindle takes on the ultimate stakes.

Set in the Soviet Union during the Stalinist era, Child 44 follows security officer Leo Demidov, played by Tom Hardy, as he fights to uncover the shocking truth about a serial killer in a country where the existence of `crime` is vehemently denied by the government. The film is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Tom Rob Smith.

An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces. Paris of Troy has taken Helen from her husband, King Menelaus of Sparta, sparking the Trojan War. The siege of Troy has begun, resulting in several years of stalemate. This does not prevent small victories on both sides and the scene is set for a final climactic battle. It is the year 1250 B.C. during the late Bronze age. Two emerging nations begin to clash after Paris, the Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband, Menelaus, and sail with him back to Troy. After Menelaus finds out that his wife was taken by the Trojans, he asks his brother Agamemnon to help him get her back. Agamemnon sees this as an opportunity for power. So they set off with 1,000 ships holding 50,000 Greeks to Troy. With the help of Achilles, the Greeks are able to fight the never before defeated Trojans. But they come to a stop by Hector, Prince of Troy. The whole movie shows their battle struggles and the foreshadowing of fate in this adaptation of Homer's classic "The Iliad." Agamemnon (Brian Cox), king of Mycenae, has united most of Greece's kingdoms under his rule and now advances his army upon the nation of Thessaly. King Triopas (Julian Glover) bargains with Agamemnon to each let one of their best fighters decide who wins the battle rather than engaging in open war. Triopas calls upon the giant Boagrius (Nathan Jones) while Agamemnon calls to Achilles. Achilles lives to fight but he refuses to associate with Agamemnon, preferring instead to seek his own destiny and be immortalized in history. Achilles easily defeats Boagrius, sealing Agamemnon's control over the nation. Meanwhile, Princes Hector (Eric Bana) and Paris (Orlando Bloom) of Troy feast in the banquet hall of King Menelaus of Sparta (Brendan Gleeson) as honored guests and peace ambassadors to their home nation. However, Paris sneaks away to be with Menelaus' beautiful wife, Helen (Diane Kruger), whom he loves dearly. He convinces her to come back with him to Troy, stowing her away on his brother's ship. When Hector finds out he is clearly angry, but it is too late to return to Sparta with Helen and seek pardon. Finding Helen gone, Menelaus vows revenge on Troy and seeks the approval of his brother, Agamemnon, who is only too happy to oblige, though Agamemnon's decision comes mostly from his desire to sack Troy. Odysseus (Sean Bean), king of Ithaca and under command of Agamemnon, goes to convince Achilles to accompany them in the conquest of Troy. He finds him sparring with his young cousin, Patroclus (Garrett Hedlund), who is more than eager to join in the fighting. Achilles seeks advice from his mother, the sea nymph Thetis (Julie Christie), who tells him that if he chooses to stay home, he will find a wife, raise a family, and die old and loved. If he goes to Troy, he will find his eternal glory and history will remember his name for thousands of years but will die and will never return. Hector and Paris meet their father, King Priam (Peter O'Toole), who welcomes Helen and praises her beauty. Hector is reunited with his wife, Andromache (Saffron Burrows), and his infant son. Achilles decides to join Agamemnon's campaign against Troy but brings his own warriors, the Myrmidons, led by Eudorus (Vincent Regan). Patroclus accompanies them as well. The Myrmidons prove to be faster rowers than the Greeks and arrive on the shores of Troy before anyone else. They take the beach with ease and sack the Temple of Apollo where priestess and cousin of Hector and Paris, Briseis (Rose Byrne), is taken captive. Prince Hector leads an offensive to keep the Greeks at bay and runs into the temple where Achilles confronts him but refuses to fight him. Achilles explains that their fight would be suited best in front of an audience, and he allows Hector to leave. Agamemnon claims Briseis, as his own spoil of war, which drives Achilles into a rage. He threatens to fight for her but is stopped by Briseis. Priam consults his war counsel & Paris offers to fight Menelaus alone to avoid bloodshed. Priam gives him the Sword of Troy. Hector finds Helen trying to leave the city as she thinks a lot of people will die for her. Hector convinces her that since Agamemnon is involved, it is no longer about just her. Next day Agamemnon marches to Troy, but Achilles still angry over Briseis stays at camp. Paris fights Menelaus 1:1, but Agamemnon is clear that he will attack Troy regardless of the outcome. Paris is wounded & crawls back to Hector, who protects Paris & kills Menelaus. Agamemnon attacks. Troy repels & keep off his army. Agamemnon is forced to retreat under the Troy onslaught. Achillies rescues Briseis from Agamemnon's troops & has sex with her with her consent. He decides to go back to Greece. Hearing this, Patroclus is devastated, having hoped to take part in battle. Hector advises his father that the Greeks underestimated Trojan strength and that they should not do the same. However, General Glaucus (James Cosmo) wants to strike preemptively, and High Priest Archeptolemus (Nigel Terry) claims Troy is favored by the gods, citing bird omens. Despite Hector's warnings to keep behind their walls, Priam favors his advisers and issues an attack before daybreak. At dawn, the Trojan army, led by Hector, attack the Greek camp. Suddenly, Achilles appears in his armor and rallies the troops to fight. Achilles fights his way towards Hector and the two engage in combat. Hector slits Achilles' throat with a swift thrust of the sword. Achilles falls, gasping for breath, while the Myrmidons look on in horror. But when Hector removes his helmet, he discovers that its Patroclus. He addresses Odysseus and tells him they've fought enough that day. Before leaving, Odysseus tells Hector that Patroclus was Achilles' cousin. The Myrmidons return to camp as Achilles emerges from his tent. Seeing them battle-worn, he asks why they disobeyed him. Eudorus laments that Patroclus disguised himself in Achilles' armor, even moved like him, and fell under Hector. Achilles is outraged and attacks Eudorus. Achilles puts his cousin on a funeral pyre and sets it alight. Agamemnon watches and says, "That boy may have just saved the war for us", knowing that the rage of Achilles will not wane until he's had revenge. Meanwhile, Helen watches as Paris practices his archery in preparation for battle, hitting his target time and again. The following morning, Achilles sets off to enact vengeance upon Hector. Briseis begs him not to go, but he ignores her. He rides to the gates of Troy and calls for Hector who dresses in his armor and says goodbye to his wife. He meets Achilles outside alone. Achilles throws down his helmet so that Hector can see his face. As they begin to fight, Priam and Paris watch while Helen comforts Andromache who can't bring herself to look. Achilles overpowers Hector by driving his spear into his chest. That night, Achilles is visited by a stranger in a cloak. The stranger kisses Achilles' hand before revealing himself as none other than King Priam. Having stealthily entered the Greek camp unnoticed, Priam begs for his son's body back to be given a proper burial. He tells Achilles that, while Hector killed his cousin, he did not know who it was, and he asks Achilles how many cousins and brothers he's killed in his time. Despite being enemies, he asks for respect. Achilles relents. He weeps over Hector's body, promising to meet him in the next life, before giving him to Priam. When Briseis comes forward, Achilles allows her to go home and apologizes for hurting her. He gives Priam his word that the Greeks will not attack Troy for 12 days to allot for proper mourning. When Agamemnon hears of Achilles' secret treaty with Priam, he becomes incensed. But Odysseus, who notices the sculpture of a horse a fellow soldier has made for his son, proposes a plan, putting the 12 days of mourning to their advantage. After 12 days, the Trojans discover that the beach has been abandoned and various bodies lie in the sand. They appear to have been taken by disease and, where the heart of the camp once was, a large wooden horse has been erected. Upon seeing this, Priam is advised that the horse was left as a gift to the god Poseidon and is encouraged to bring it back to Troy. Paris, who is suspicious, urges his father to burn the horse, but Priam brings the horse into the city where its revered as a sign of the end of the war. A Trojan scout, hiking through the cliffs outside the city, comes upon a cove apart from the main beach and discovers the Greek armada hiding there. However, he is killed by arrow before he can warn the rest of Troy. Meanwhile, the whole city celebrates into the night. Once everything has quieted down, the horse opens and Achilles, Odysseus, and a mass of Greek soldiers emerge from inside and open Troy's gates where the rest of the Greek army has gathered. They quickly infiltrate the city, pillaging and burning homes and killing any Trojan who stands in their way while a tearful Priam can only watch. Soldiers of Troy attempt to defend the royal palace but fail. As Priam prays before the statue of Apollo and asks why he's been forsaken, Agamemnon comes up behind him and stabs him in the back. Achilles, meanwhile, searches the city for Briseis. Paris and Andromache lead surviving civilians down to the secret passage where Paris gives a young boy, Aeneas (Frankie Fitzgerald) (a progenitor of the Romans), the Sword of Troy, reciting what his father told him. He then returns with his bow and arrow to help fight. Briseis is praying before a statue of Apollo when she is grabbed from behind by Agamemnon. Achilles sees this and runs to her aid. Agamemnon tells Briseis his intent to take her back to Greece as his slave before she takes a concealed knife and fatally stabs him in the neck. His guards accost her, but Achilles kills them. As he is helping her up, Paris arrives and shoots and arrow through Achilles' heel. Standing up to face Paris, despite Briseis' cries, Achilles is shot again through the chest. He removes the arrow only to be shot again and again, each time removing the arrow. He finally collapses and tells Briseis that she was his peace in a lifetime of war and urges her to escape. Briseis goes with Paris, and they leave as the Greeks arrive at the palace to find Achilles dead, seemingly taken by a single shot to the heel (thus perpetuating the myth surrounding his death). Achilles' body is burned honorably on a funeral pyre within the ruins of Troy the following day as Odysseus watches and exalts, "If they ever tell my story, let them say I walked with giants. Men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will never die. Let them say I lived in the time of Hector, tamer of horses. Let them say I lived in the time of Achilles."