Braveheart

Braveheart
Directed by Mel Gibson
Produced by Mel Gibson
Alan Ladd, Jr.
Bruce Davey
Stephen McEveety
Written by Randall Wallace
Narrated by Angus Macfadyen
Starring Mel Gibson
Sophie Marceau
Catherine McCormack
Patrick McGoohan
Angus Macfadyen
Brendan Gleeson
Music by James Horner
Cinematography John Toll
Editing by Steven Rosenblum
Distributed by USA and Canada:
Paramount Pictures
Icon Entertainment
Non-USA:
20th Century Fox
Release date(s) May 24, 1995
Running time 175 min.
Country Flag of the United States.svg United States
Language English
French
Latin
Budget $53,000,000
Gross revenue $202,600,000

Braveheart is a 1995 historical action-drama movie produced and directed by Mel Gibson, who also starred in the title role. The film was written for screen and then novelized by Randall Wallace. Gibson portrays a legendary Scot, William Wallace, who gained recognition when he came to the forefront of the First War of Scottish Independence by opposing Edward I of England (portrayed by Patrick McGoohan) and subsequently abetted by Edward's daughter-in-law Princess Isabelle (played by Sophie Marceau) and a claimant to the Scottish throne, Robert the Bruce (played by Angus Macfadyen).

The film won five Academy Awards at the 68th Academy Awards, including the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director, and had been nominated for an additional five. Produced by Icon Productions for Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox, the film's success helped revive the historical epic genre, with subsequent films such as Gladiator, The Patriot, Alexander, Troy, Kingdom of Heaven, 300 and Mongol.

Contents

Plot

In A.D. 1280 Edward I of England, known as "Longshanks", has occupied much of Scotland, and his oppressive rule there leads to the deaths of William Wallace's father and brother. Years later, after Wallace has been raised abroad by his uncle, the Scots continue to live under the harsh thumb of Longshanks' cruel laws. Wallace returns, intent on living as a farmer and avoiding involvement in the ongoing "Troubles." Wallace rekindles a romance with his childhood friend Murron after showing her the carefully preserved thistle she gave him as a child, and the two marry in secret to avoid the primae noctis decree the King has set forth. But after Wallace attacks a group of English soldiers attempting to rape her, the village Sheriff publicly cuts Murron's throat before Wallace is able to save her. An enraged Wallace, with the assistance of his fellow villagers, slaughters the English garrison. He then cuts the sheriff's throat with the same dagger that killed Murron.

Knowing that the local English lord will retaliate, Wallace and his men enter his castle dressed in English uniforms and burn it down. In response to Wallace's exploits, the commoners of Scotland rise in revolt against England.

As his legend spreads, hundreds of Scots from the surrounding clans volunteer to join Wallace's militia. Wallace leads his army through a series of successful battles against the English, including the Battle of Stirling and sacking the city of York. However, he is betrayed by the Scottish nobility and defeated at the Battle of Falkirk.

He goes into hiding, fighting a guerrilla war against English forces, and personally murders the two Scottish nobles who betrayed him at Falkirk. Meanwhile, Princess Isabelle, whose husband Prince Edward (Longshanks's son and heir) ignores her, meets with Wallace as the English King's emissary. She and Wallace share a tryst, during which she conceives Wallace's child. Still believing there is some good in the nobility of his country, Wallace eventually agrees to meet with the Bruce. He is caught in a trap set by the elder Bruce and the other nobles, beaten unconscious, and handed over to the English Crown. Robert the Bruce is enraged by his father's treachery, and disowns him forever.

In London, Wallace is brought before the English magistrates and tried for high treason. He denies the charges, declaring that he had never accepted Edward as his King. The court responds by sentencing him to be "purified by pain." Later, in a London square, William Wallace is tortured to death, being hanged, racked, and disemboweled. The magistrate offers him a quick death in exchange for a plea for mercy. Awed by Wallace's courage, the Londoners watching the execution begin to yell for mercy to be given. William signals to the magistrate that he wishes to speak. Using the last strength in his body, he cries, "Freedom!" and turns his head, seeing Murron in the crowd smiling at him as he is beheaded.

Some time later, Robert the Bruce takes control of the remaining Scottish army and faces a ceremonial line of English troops at the fields of Bannockburn. Cheering Wallace's name, Robert the Bruce and the Scots charge the stunned English lines and win their freedom.

Production

Gibson thought that he was too old to play the role of William Wallace and wished instead to cast actor Jason Patric. However, his company Icon Productions had difficulty raising enough money even if Gibson agreed to star in the film. Warner Bros. was willing to fund the project on the condition that Gibson sign for another Lethal Weapon sequel, which he refused. Paramount Pictures only agreed to domestic distribution of Braveheart after Fox Studios partnered for international rights.[1]

While the crew spent six weeks shooting on location in Scotland, the major battle scenes were shot in Ireland using members of the Irish Army Reserve as extras. The opposing armies are made up of reservists, up to 1,600 in some scenes, who had been given permission to grow beards and swapped their olive-drab uniforms for medieval garb.[2]

According to Gibson, he was inspired by the big screen epics he had loved as a child, such as Stanley Kubrick's Spartacus and William Wyler's The Big Country.

Cast

Reception

Box office

On opening weekend, Braveheart grossed US$9,938,276 in the United States. Its overall domestic gross was $75.6 million, and its total worldwide gross was $210.4 million.

The film's depiction of the Battle of Stirling is often considered one of the greatest movie battles in cinema history.[3][4]

The film generated huge interest in Scotland and in Scottish history, not only around the world, but also in Scotland itself. Fans come from all over the world to see the places in Scotland where William Wallace fought for Scottish freedom, and also to Ireland to see the locations used in the film. At a Braveheart Convention in 1997, held in Stirling the day after the Scottish Devolution vote and attended by 200 delegates from around the world, Braveheart author Randall Wallace, Seoras Wallace of the Wallace Clan, Scottish historian David Ross and Bláithín FitzGerald from Ireland gave lectures on various aspects of the film. Several of the actors also attended including James Robinson (Young William), Andrew Weir (Young Hamish), Julie Austin (the young bride) and Mhairi Calvey (Young Murron).

Awards

The film won numerous awards including the 1995 Academy Award for:

Nominated:

Cultural effects

The film is credited by Lin Anderson, author of Braveheart: From Hollywood To Holyrood as having played a significant role in affecting the Scottish political landscape in the mid to late 1990s.[5]

Wallace Monument

In 1997 a statue of Gibson as "William Wallace" was placed outside the Wallace Monument near Stirling, Scotland. The statue, which includes the word "Braveheart" on Wallace's shield, the work of sculptor Tom Church, was the cause of much controversy and one local resident stated that it was wrong to "desecrate the main memorial to Wallace with a lump of crap".[6] In 1998 the statue was vandalised by someone who smashed the face in with a hammer. After repairs were made, the statue was encased in a cage at night to prevent further vandalism. This has only incited more calls for the statue to be removed as it now appears that the Gibson/Wallace figure is imprisoned; an irony, considering that the statue bears the word "Freedom" on the plinth.

Spoofs and cultural references

Criticism

Accusations of homophobia

Although Randall Wallace wrote the screenplay, the depiction of an "effeminate" character in the film drew accusations of 'homophobia' against Gibson. Source Review Some have criticized Braveheart for its portrayal of the Prince of Wales as weak and effeminate and for the scene in which Edward I throws his son’s male lover out of the window.[7][8] Gibson defended his depiction of Prince Edward as weak and ineffectual, saying,

“'I'm just trying to respond to history. You can cite other examples – Alexander the Great, for example, who conquered the entire world, was also a homosexual. But this story isn't about Alexander the Great. It's about Edward II.”[9]

Gibson asserted that the reason the king killed his son’s lover was because the king was a “psychopath,”[10] and he expressed bewilderment that some audience members would laugh at this murder:

"We cut a scene out, unfortunately . . . where you really got to know that character (Edward II) and to understand his plight and his pain. . . . But it just stopped the film in the first act so much that you thought, 'When's this story going to start?'"[11]

Historical inaccuracies

Historian Elizabeth Ewan describes Braveheart as a film which "almost totally sacrifices historical accuracy for epic adventure".[12]

Historian Sharon Kressa notes that the film contains numerous historical errors, beginning with the wearing of belted plaid by Wallace and his men. She points out that in the period in question, "... no Scots ... wore belted plaids (let alone kilts of any kind)."[13] Moreover, when highlanders finally did begin wearing the belted plaid, it was not "in the rather bizarre style depicted in the film."[13] She compares the inaccuracy to "... a film about Colonial America showing the colonial men wearing 20th century business suits, but with the jackets worn back-to-front instead of the right way around."[13]

Historian Alex von Tunzelmann writing in The Guardian noted several historical inaccuracies: William Wallace never met Isabelle, as she married the Prince of Wales three years after Wallace's death; in the film the Battle of Stirling Bridge didn't include Stirling Bridge itself; and the primae noctis decree was never used by King Edward.[14]

Screenwriter Randall Wallace is very vocal about defending his script from historians who have dismissed the film as a Hollywood perversion of actual events. Admitting that Braveheart is based more on Blind Harry's poem than any historical source, he has said: "Is Blind Harry true? I don't know. I know that it spoke to my heart and that's what matters to me, that it spoke to my heart."[15]

In the DVD audio commentary of Braveheart, director Mel Gibson acknowledges many of the historical inaccuracies but defends his choices as director, noting that the way events were portrayed in the film were much more "cinematically compelling" than the historical and/or mythical fact.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for Braveheart was composed by James Horner, who also composed soundtracks for Titanic, Aliens and Apollo 13. The music was recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra. The first soundtrack was noticeably successful, and Horner produced a follow-up soundtrack in 1997 titled More Music from Braveheart. International and French versions of the soundtrack have also been released. The original album contains 77 minutes of background music taken from significant scenes in the film.

Braveheart (1995)

  1. Main Title (2:51)
  2. A Gift of a Thistle (1:37)
  3. Wallace Courts Murron (4:25)
  4. The Secret Wedding (6:33)
  5. Attack on Murron (3:00)
  6. Revenge (6:23)
  7. Murron’s Burial (2:13)
  8. Making Plans/ Gathering the Clans (2:05)
  9. “Sons of Scotland” (6:19)
  10. The Battle of Stirling (6:07)
  11. For the Love of a Princess (4:07)
  12. Falkirk (4:04)
  13. Betrayal & Desolation (7:48)
  14. Mornay’s Dream (1:18)
  15. The Legend Spreads (1:09)
  16. The Princess Pleads for Wallace’s Life (3:38)
  17. “Freedom”/The Execution/ Bannockburn (7:24)
  18. End Credits (7:16)

More Music from Braveheart (1997)

The follow-up soundtrack features dialogue taken from the actual film, while the original soundtrack was purely an instrumental recording.

  1. Prologue/ "I Shall Tell You of Williams…" (dialogue-Robert the Bruce) (3:35)
  2. Outlawed Tunes on Outlawed Bag Pipes (2:03)
  3. The Royal Wedding (dialogue-Robert the Bruce) (2:12)
  4. "The Trouble with Scotland" (dialogue-King Edward the Longshanks) (0:40)
  5. Scottish Wedding Music (1:14)
  6. Prima Noctum (1:46)
  7. The Proposal (dialogue-Wallace and Murron) (1:35)
  8. "Scotland Is Free!" (dialogue-Wallace) (0:17)
  9. Point of War/JonnyCope/Up in the Morning Early (traditional) (2:59)
  10. Conversing with the Almighty (dialogue-various) (1:20)
  11. The Road to the Isles/ Grendaural Highlanders/ The Old Rustic Bridge by the Hill (traditional) (3:52)
  12. "Son of Scotland!" (dialogue-Wallace) (12:09)
  13. Vision of Murron (1:45)
  14. "Unite the Clans!" (dialogue-Wallace) (0:23)
  15. The Legend Spreads (dialogue-Storytellers) (1:07)
  16. "Why Do You Help Me?" (dialogue-Wallace and Princess Isabelle) (0:37)
  17. For the Love of a Princess (previously released score) (4:05)
  18. "Not Every man Really Lives" (dialogue-Wallace and Isabelle)
  19. "The Prisoner wishes to Say a Word (dialogue-The Executioner and Wallace) (3:43)
  20. "After the Beheading" (dialogue-Robert the Bruce) (1:48)
  21. "You Have Bled for Wallace!" (dialogue-Robert the Bruce) (1:22)
  22. Warrior Poets (dialogue-Wallace) (0:29)
  23. Scotland the Brave (traditional) (2:47)
  24. Leaving Glenurquhart (traditional) (3:32)
  25. Kirkhill (traditional) (4:08)

References

  1. ↑ Michael Fleming (2005-07-25). "Mel tongue-ties studios", Daily Variety. 
  2. ↑ Braveheart 10th Chance To Boost Tourism In Trim, Meath Chronicle, August 28, 2003 (Accessed 30 April 2007)
  3. ↑ "The best -- and worst -- movie battle scenes", CNN (2007-03-30). Retrieved on 2007-04-01. 
  4. ↑ Noah Sanders (2007-03-28). "Great Modern Battle Scenes - Updated!", Double Viking. Retrieved on 2007-04-02. 
  5. ↑ Wallace movie ‘helped Scots get devolution’ - [Sunday Herald]
  6. ↑ The American Spectator
  7. ↑ Gays Should Beware of Men in Kilts
  8. ↑ Masculinity and marginality in 'Rob Roy' and 'Braveheart' Winter 1997
  9. ↑ The San Francisco Chronicle, May 21, 1995, “Mel Gibson Dons Kilt and Directs” by Ruth Stein
  10. ↑ Matt Zoller Seitz. "Mel Gibson talks about Braveheart, movie stardom, and media treachery". Dallas Observer. Retrieved on 2008-01-27.
  11. ↑ USA Today, May 24, 1995, “Gibson has faith in family and freedom” by Marco R. della Cava
  12. ↑ Ewan, Elizabeth. "Braveheart." American Historical Review 100, no. 4 (October 1995): 1219–21.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 http://medievalscotland.org/scotbiblio/bravehearterrors.shtml Medieval Scotland website
  14. ↑ Tunzelmann, Alex. "Braveheart: dancing peasants, gleaming teeth and a cameo from Fabio", The Guardian, 2008-07-30. Retrieved on 2008-08-03.
  15. ↑ Anderson, Lin. "Braveheart: From Hollywood to Holyrood." Luath Press Ltd. (2005): 27.

External links

Awards
Preceded by
Forrest Gump		 Academy Award for Best Picture
1995		 Succeeded by
The English Patient
Main Filmography of Mel Gibson
as Actor
Mad Max (1979) • Tim (1979) • Mad Max 2 (1981) • Gallipoli (1981) • The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) • The Bounty (1984) • The River (1984) • Mrs. Soffel (1984) • Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) • Lethal Weapon (1987) • Tequila Sunrise (1988) • Lethal Weapon 2 (1989) • Bird on a Wire (1990) • Air America (1990) • Hamlet (1990) • Forever Young (1991) • Lethal Weapon 3 (1992) • Maverick (1994) • Pocahontas (1995) • Ransom (1996) • Conspiracy Theory (1997) • Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) • Payback (1999) • Chicken Run (2000) • The Patriot (2000) • What Women Want (2000) • The Million Dollar Hotel (2000) • We Were Soldiers (2002) • Signs (2002) Paparazzi (2004) • The Singing Detective (2003) • Edge of Darkness (2009)
as Actor / Director
The Man Without a Face (1993) • Braveheart (1995)
as Director and Co-writer
as Guest Star
Academy Award for Best Picture

Chariots of Fire (1981) · Gandhi (1982) · Terms of Endearment (1983) · Amadeus (1984) · Out of Africa (1985) · Platoon (1986) · The Last Emperor (1987) · Rain Man (1988) · Driving Miss Daisy (1989) · Dances with Wolves (1990) · The Silence of the Lambs (1991) · Unforgiven (1992) · Schindler's List (1993) · Forrest Gump (1994) · Braveheart (1995) · The English Patient (1996) · Titanic (1997) · Shakespeare in Love (1998) · American Beauty (1999) · Gladiator (2000)

Complete List · (1928–1940) · (1941–1960) · (1961–1980) · (1981–2000) · (2001–present)