Braveheart

Rating:
Summary: "Let Me Tell You of William Wallace..."
Review: Hopefully, THE PASSION will not obscure this, Gibson's masterful account of the life and death of Scottish patriot William Wallace. Short on facts but long on legend, BRAVEHEART is an epic in the grand style of David Lean, possibly the best character biodrama since LAWRENCE OF ARABIA.

This Academy-Award winning film, Gibson's directorial debut, is lavish, colorful, and long. Gibson's portrayal of Wallace is mythic, but threaded with a fine appreciation of the human frailties of Wallace, who led his countrymen in a protracted War of Independence against English rule in the early 1300s.

Gibson's Wallace is balanced, a leader amongst men who accepts his role and the attendant lionizing that accompanies it, with bemusement and wit. The character of Wallace is nearly the perfect man, being forceful, ruthless, civilized, passionate, crafty, educated, and sensitive as the occasion demands. His slow downfall in the second half of the film (and his horrible death) are envisioned not as failures in the man but as born of a need to believe, even in the face of the treachery and self-interest of others.

The Scottish nobles are drawn as amoral and torn between alliance with England and a fractious independence (as they historically were). Although they fail Wallace miserably, he is so convinced of the rightness of his cause that he returns time and again to them to bolster is military and political clout. The vicious betrayal of Robert The Bruce (and his ultimate redemption) is a plot within a plot, and is played beautifully by Angus McFadyen.

Gibson's vision of the battle scenes, drawn as they are with hundreds of extras, screaming horses, and gore enough for a teenage "slaughter" movie are singularly exciting and propel the film forward at a literal gallop. The bloody-handed Wallace is a vision in violence and determination, and ultimate passion.

Patrick MacGoohan as Edward ("The Longshanks") Plantagenet is absolutely ruthless and cunning. Although the historical Edward was rather more of a legalist who had legitimate claims by law and bloodline to the throne of Scotland, MacGoohan's Edward is little more than a cultivated butcher.

The historical king was responsible for the reinstitution of "Prima Nocte," essentially the legalized rape of new brides, and he did banish the Jews from England (an edict which lasted centuries), so MacGoohan's characterization is not so much caricature as it may at first seem. Similarly, Edward the Prince of Wales was reviled for his effeminacy in an era where men like Longshanks and Wallace were literally worshiped by their vassals and subjects. Whether he was quite so flamboyant as depicted here is questionable.

Fine supporting performances are supplied by Sophie Marceau as the Princess of Wales/French King's daughter, and by Catherine McCormack, who plays Wallace's wife Murron. Murron, and her memory, animate Wallace, and therefore the film. McCormack is angelic and sensual by turns as need demands, and carries this brief but crucial role with grace.

BRAVEHEART is questionable history, but fine inspiration. It is as Wallace says: "Every man dies...not every man really lives."

Rating:
Summary: A Fulfilled Vision
Review: Usually people say that they don't want to be taught anything when they go to movies, they want to be entertained. Hence it's surprising how many reviews focus on the historical inaccuracies of this movie.
A photograph is to a painting what a documentary is to a movie. A photograph captures visual information on what is already present in the world, and so the creative leeway is limited. On the other hand, a painting is not confined to what is but may show things as they ought to be. Thus the creative potential of the painter is unlimited and the final product is a reflection of the artist's moral vision of the world.
A documentary is a succession of photographs -- still frames -- with the addition of sound. A documentary shows what has already happened. The quality of the documentary depends on the choice of the subject, the cinematography and other technical aspects, and most relevant here, the accuracy as compared to the real world events.
Braveheart is not a documentary and does not puport to be one. It is a movie, and its methods are whatever will suit its own unique purpose, which is evidently to fulfill a vision of a roughly ideal individual. And in this purpose it spectacularly succeeds. It is, as the title Braveheart implies, the story of a superb example of a man, who lusts for life, who cherishes his values and fights to defend them, and who maintains his integrity even unto the last. When the sun rises and the black-hearted retreat from its glare, it is the men of this kind of stature who remain, free to bask in the warmth of its rays.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome movie!!
Review: Nothing more to say. Mel Gibson, Scotland, etc. You can't go wrong with Mel Gibson's movies!

Rating:
Summary: Brutal, visceral, comical, powerful...everything you need
Review: We don't get a lot of great epics these days. Sure Titanic was great after watching the first couple times but when specials ran endlessly and that song(you know what one)was getting on your nerves, pretty soon that story of huge tragedy became a media event. Since then, we just get 2 and a half hour or movies that shouldn't be. Nothing really matches the epics of old, like Spartacus, Ben Hur or Lawrence of Arabia. This film may not match those, but it offers an alternative.

The film mainly set in 13th century Scotland, follows the story of William Wallace. As a boy, he had a father who fought for the freedom of Scotland, but soon, his father is killed on an apparent attack. He's taken in by his uncle who proceeds to teach him languages, history, and take him as far as Rome on pilgramages. When he gets back, fully mature, he just wants to settle down with his love, Murron. However, the King invokes the First Night law, a law where if a Scottish couple marry, one of the British officers gets to have the wife for a night.

Not wanting to share his love, William marrys in secret. However, an Englishman finds out and kills his wife. There he just sets off attacking forces for the freedom of Scotland.

Very powerful in it's message, and very brutal. Make sure kids don't see this, there's a lot of carnage images on the screen(including a briefly seen shot of a metal ball hitting a head. Let's just say his face looks...rather different.) But, if bad teen romances and gag humor films, aren't your thing and want something more extravagant, can't go wrong with Braveheart

Rating:
Summary: Great movie but fast forward through the battle scenes
Review: This movie makes Mel Gibsons acting career finally respectable. Formerly he had just been a pretty boy in action movies, but finally shows there may be more to this Aussie than meets the eye.
Gibson takes the historical heroic tale of the Scottish Revolution against the British, led by William Wallace, mixes it with a little romance, and then recieves his Oscar. The two notable awards were for direction, which was done creatively, especially in complex battle scenes that were too gory, and Best Picture.

Briefly the movie is about a courageous young Scottsman who is forced into a fight against the English after they murdered his lover, whom he married in secret to avoid a new law giving the local Lord sexual rights to her. As the movie progresses his fight becomes less about revenge and more about the principle of freedom: securing happiness for his imaginary family with his deceased wife. To successfully fight the British he uses the unhappy lovesick Princess of England(stuck in a marriage with a gay man) who dreams of loving William Wallace. The movie ends realistically, without diminishing any of the inspiration and hope that eventually drives the Scottish people to obtain their freedom.

Highlights of the film:
Sophie Marceau - A french actress playing the princess is surprisingly good. She is elegant and graceful in this movie almost reminding me of the great Audrey Hepburn, if only because of her long black hair and beautiful face.

David O'Hara - Plays a seemingly crazy irishman. His antics will make you laugh, but his character will make you ponder.

Negatives:
Battle Scenes are way too gory. I miss the old days when violence was still only suggestive. I don't need to see it. In fact I would rather be able to tell it's fake. I don't understand Hollywood's push to make dismembered burnt bodies look real. Are we human?

I'm a bit confused over the relation between the dead wife, Wallace and the princess. The movie tries to tell you the whole fight is just for the dead wife. It tries to convince us how much Mel Gibson loves his wife. And yet he goes and sleeps with the princess just because she brings him some weapons. This is why I think he was using her and probably just got a bit horny one night.

Rating:
Summary: Braveheart
Review: This is my most favorite movie in the whole wide world! Now, for a girl, I have to say that even the blood and gore scenes are good. They are very well put together and director, Mel Gibson, does a very good job in making them actually look realistic. The whole plot is very enticing, and if you like a little comic relief there's a little bit of that thrown in there as well.

I highly recomend this movie to anyone who likes a movie crampacked with action and drama.

Kudos to Mel Gibson as he stars and directs this piece.

Rating:
Summary: Oscar Bait
Review: It might have been a weak oscar year for all concerned, but after having been dragged into the theatres for "Apollo 13", and "Babe" in the same month, I was more than surprised when I strolled in on a rainy Tuesday morning to see this film. It might have been three hours long, but to me, it seemed like it was over too quickly.

THAT's the mark of a good film.

Now that I've had the chance to view it several times over, I have to first make note of the numerous problems with the film editing--some of the action sequences are cut haphazardly, and historically, the film isn't as accurate as it might appear; possibly for entertainment purposes (because after all, it's supposed to be a popcorn movie too, right?).

I realize that this was a labour of love for Gibson, and as a director, he'd already proven his mettle with the film "Man Without A Face". But "Braveheart" took us back to the days of cinematic epics, borrowing liberally from "Henry V", "Ben Hur", and especially "Spartacus". It doesn't suffer much by comparison to any of those films, and in many ways, is a much superior film.

The cinematography by John Toll and the musical score by James Horner are both first-rate; the best I've seen/heard in ages. Thankfully, this was also a film made with very little in the way of CGI, something that "Gladiator" made too much use of.

If you're a lover of DVD surround, or of historical epics, you can't be without this movie in your collection.

Rating:
Summary: Braveheart Packs a Whallop
Review: I wish I could have rated this film 5 stars, but the two completely unneccessary sex scenes--believe me, I don't watch them, but I know that they are there--two swear words, and some gratuitous violence dropped my rating to 4 stars.
The directing of this film, indeed the entire screen impact is incredible. The screenplay is good, and the acting is tremendous. Mel Gibson as the patriotic young Scot William Wallace (and also the director of the film) is acting in his best sort of role, and he does it very well. Sophie Marceau as the French-born princess of Wales is very good too. Patrick McGoohan as the villainous Edward Longshanks is a good actor, and there are some funny scenes between him and his weakling of a sodomite son.
This is a long film, but all parts of it help the story, and there are no boring sections. It is the well-acted, well directed, and just well made sort of film that only comes around every once in a while.
This is a great film for families with older children, but unfortunately, if you are alergic to fire or swords, this film is not for you. There is simply too much for you to handle.

Rating:
Summary: My Favorite Movie
Review: If you are into fighting and war movies pick this one up. It has some of the best fight scenes to ever be in a film. Mel Gibson being one of my favorite actors playing the lead role in my favorite movie, it just doesnt get any better than this. If you have the time i suggest reading the books about Sir William Wallace. A little sidenote to biff or whoever it was that made the comment about him noticing about Wallace throwing rocks with different hands, maybe you should know that back at that time in the late 1200's men were encouraged to use both hands equally as good, just a little lesson for you today. Check your information before you put it down in writing. I'd like to thank Mr. Gibson for taking the role as Sir William Wallace i dont think anyone could have done it better.

Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: "Braveheart," Mel Gibson's Oscar-winning epic about the life of Scottish revolutionaire William Wallace, has to be one of the most superlative movies I have ever seen. It's epic, yet intimate, an intense war film and an intense character study. But Gibson makes it all work with an inspired performance as Wallace, and equally inspired direction that earned him a well-deserved Best Director Oscar.

The story is the life of William Wallace, a man who tries to overthrow the English rule over Scotland, after seeing his father and brother dead by the hands of the English, training with his uncle for many years, and seeing his wife murdered by a remorseless magistrate. Wallace proceeds to gather an army to go to war against the ruthless English King Edward l (a brillantly visceral Patrick McGoohan) nicknamed Longshanks. The battle scenes between Scottish rebels and the English forces are spectacularly bloody and violent. Gibson does not shy away from the raw, unforgiving nature of medieval warfare, which gives the scenes a sense of true realism.

"Braveheart" also boasts a healthly dose of Shakesperian influence, as a story of political intrigue meshes perfectly with Wallace's tale of revenge. The scottish nobles, who are prodominantly on the side of the English, are hesitant to aid Wallace and his forces against the English, looking out only for themselves. But one noble in particular, Robert the Bruce (an emotional Angus McFayden) is torn between the ideals of Wallace and the ambitions of his father. Robert has to choose many times between Wallace and dear-old-dad, to ambiguous results. He ultimately leads Wallace to the movie's end, which is probably the most powerful ten minutes ever filmed. And "Braveheart" is arguably the most powerful film ever made.