DVD
REVIEW: BRAVEHEART
(Collector's Edition)
12/16/07
Back in the Summer of 1995,
when I was just a young lad, I went to see the movie
Braveheart at my local cinema. I didn’t know much about the
movie and didn’t expect much from it either. However, from
the very beginning, Braveheart transported me to 13th
century Scotland and never let go. This is a epic adventure
in all its glory that will have you filled with excitement
and cheering on the fight for Scotland‘s freedom. Braveheart
was Mel Gibson’s second attempt at directing a feature film
and he did an amazing job that earned him the Oscar for Best
Director.
Braveheart tells the story of Sir William Wallace (Mel
Gibson) a reluctant hero. William’s Scotland is occupied by
King Edward I of England (Patrick McGoohan) and at a young
age William’s father and brother are killed fighting against
the English. William is sent to live with his Uncle and does
not get involved in any conflict with the English or anyone
else. He marries his childhood friend Murron who once gave
him a flower at his dad’s burial. They live a happy life
largely unaffected with what is going on around them. That
is until King Edward noticing that the population of Scots
is increasing far too quickly and decides to remedy this by
granting primae noctis. Primae noctis grants the English
lords the right to lay with any Scottish women on the night
of their wedding. After English soldiers attempt to carry
out primae noctis on a couple that was recently married, the
villagers retaliate and in the conflict Murron is murdered.
At this point William, fueled by a ravishing anger, and the
rest of the villages kill of the English soldiers and
incidentally begin a fight for Scotland’s independents.
I’ve seen Braveheart about five time from beginning to end
and after seeing it this last time I have say that it is the
perfect movie. The movie has a strong beginning and a story
that builds nicely from there on focusing on the tension
between William Wallace and King Edward, and the end, while
sad is also very strong. Furthermore, the themes in the
movie are timeless and relevant even in our time. William
Wallace is a pure figure of honesty and virtue who fights
for the freedom of his countryman. A lot of the others
involved in the conflict may have you thing they fight for
freedom, but they real fight for themselves to gain title
and properties. There are very few people like Williams
Wallace.
While a lot of the events in the movie have been fictionalize in order
to make the final product far more exciting than it really
is, it is fair to say that after watching the movie you will
be compelled to Google Sir William Wallace and learn about
his history and that of Scotland. This alone is a testament
on how brilliant this movie is and lets now forget the
performance by Mel Gibson. Gibson gives a first-rate
performance and it’s hard to image anyone else playing this
part. The Cinematography by John Toll is a thing of beauty.
The Academy recognize this extraordinary achievement and
awarded John Toll the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
The Oscar winner for Best Picture for 1995 finally get a
Special Collector Edition. The 2-Disc set includes a new
digitally remastered transfer that almost looks as good as a
high definition DVD. Also included are some pretty
interesting features with screenwriter Randall Wallace about
his inspiration for the story and a 30-minute documentary
about the legend of William Wallace.
VIDEO:
Widescreen Enhanced for 16:9 TVs
AUDIO:
English 5.1
Surround/French/Spanish
Subtitles English/French/Spanish
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Disk 1:
Commentary by Mel Gibson
Disk 2:
A Writer’s Journey - Screenwriter Randall Wallace
discusses how he became interested in the story of William
Wallace: Shortly before the birth of this son he became
interested in his heritage and visited Scotland for the
first time. He saw the statues of William Wallace and Robert
the Bruce and heard their story and thought that it had an
exciting premise. (21:29)
Alba Gu Brath! The Making of Braveheart:
Reviving a Genre - Mel Gibson talks about how he
pass on the movie the first time. After finishing a couple
of projects, the Braveheart script kept lingering in his
mind and he finally not only accept the title role but also
went on to direct. (18:21)
The Heat of Battle - Shows how 1400 real solider where used
to film the epic battle scenes. (16:58)
Worth
The Fight - Mel Gibson talks about how the making of
Braveheart consume his entire life while he was making it.
(14:40)
Tales of William Wallace - An interesting
documentary on the life of William Wallace that tries to
undercover where the truth ends and the legend begins.
(29:58)
Archival Interviews with the Cast of Braveheart:
Interview with James Robinson, Catherine McCormack, Brendan
Gleeson, James Cosmo, David O’ Hara, Angus MacFadyen,
Patrick McGoohan, Peter Hanly and Sophie Marceau.
Photo Montage - a six minutes photo montage
depicting behind the scene and scenes from the actual movie
to the Braveheart soundtrack.
Theatrical Trailer 1- A satisfactory trailer but not as good
as Trailer 2. (1:35)
Theatrical Trailer 2 - A better trailer focusing on
the tension between the King and William Wallace. (2:50)
RATING BREAK DOWN:
| FILM REVIEW |
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VIDEO |
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AUDIO |
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| BONUS
FEATURES |
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Review
By Brad Peterson
brad@smartcine.com
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