The Great Myths: The Iliad | The Apple of Discord (Episode 1)

A 2019 Arte France - Rosebud Production, History, Animation, Fantasy Documentary series with English narration. Click on CC for subtitles.

The creators of ‘The Great Greek Myths’ bring to you ‘The Illiad’, an epic tale on the origins of the world and its inevitable downfall, that mixes animation and 3D iconography. A story in which gods and mortals intermingle, and whose poetic force has crossed the centuries. The first work of Western literature, ‘The Iliad’ is a fresco that traces the long Trojan War. During this conflict, the Achaeans, from Mainland Greece, set off to lay siege to Troy to recover the beautiful Helena, kidnapped by Paris from her husband, the King of Sparta Menelaus. After a ten-year siege under the walls of the city of Troy, the war turned to the advantage of the Achaeans thanks to the famous Achilles.

Episode 1: A golden apple inscribed "for the fairest" is sent to a feast at Olympus by Eris, the Greek goddess of strife and discord. Unable to decide between the goddesses Aphrodite, Hera and Athena, Zeus decides to let a mortal choose, and that man is Paris, the young son of King Priam of Troy. Paris gives the apple to Aphrodite who, in exchange, promises that he will have the love of the fairest mortal woman of them all. A few days later, Paris is invited to the house of Menelaus, the king of Sparta, where he falls in love with the king's wife, Helen. The two of them run away back to Troy under Aphrodite's spell. Filled with rage, Menelaus goes to see his brother, Agamemnon, the most powerful of all the Greek kings. At first, he is tempted to be wise and prudent, but then he is manipulated by Hera and Athena, who still harbour a grudge against Paris for not choosing them. Agamemnon finally summons all the kings of Greece to go and wage war on Troy.