Posted on 11/24/2004 4:10:44 AM PST by jalisco555
If you played a word-association game with "Alexander the Great," you'd probably come up with "conqueror," "king," "warrior," "legend," "despot," "wastrel" or "killer." Unfortunately, Oliver Stone has chosen to build his epic of the Macedonian military genius around a word highly unlikely to make the list: "crybaby."
In Stone's view, this is a highly neurotic young man whose emotions, far from being repressed or disciplined as one would expect of a great soldier of the 4th century B.C., are worn on his sleeve, except, of course, that he doesn't have sleeves, the shirt still being two millennia down the road. So he wears them on his wrist -- and it's a limp one.
As Alexander's mother, Angelina Jolie (replete with snake) is given a thankless role, while star Colin Farrell gets lost in the shuffle in another been-there, seen-that battle scene. (Photos Jaap Buitendijk -- Warner Bros. Pictures)
That's the weirdest aspect of the extremely weird, if absurdly expensive, movie. Stone gives himself much credit of "telling the truth" about Alexander's bisexuality as if it's some progressive badge of honor, but at the same time he can't get away from the cruelest, least imaginative stereotyping: His Alexander, as expressed through the weepy histrionics of Colin Farrell, is more like a desperate housewife than a soldier. He's always crying, his voice trembles, his eyes fill with tears. He's much less interesting, except as a basket case, than Richard Burton's Alexander of far less enlightened times -- 1956 -- in Robert Rossen's "Alexander the Great."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Don't forget Colleen McCollough's "Masters of Rome" series on the fall of the Roman Republic. These magnificent books brought the period to life for me.
Oliver Stone''s movie is a colossal flop? MORE good news this November!
His book "The Day Before Midnight" is the best thriller I have ever read.
Dang it! This sounds awful. I didn't think much of Farrell in the role, but now I'm totally turned off.
Whoa, that's nasty. My regard for Stone has dropped even further (if that' possible).
The History Channel is running a very good history of Alexander's battle strategies, and he's portrayed as a determined, focused, brilliant, steadfast LEADER.
No matter the reviews, I will never pay a nickel to go see any movie that Oliver Stone has anything to do with.
Peter Graves (Captain Oever): "So Joey,...do you like gladiator movies?"
I saw a promo for this yesterday (While viewing "BEING JULIA") and it looked SO bad. Worse than Troy, which looked pretty bad. Farrell's stupid little hairdo always cracks me up. ON THE OTHER HAND, the trailer for THE AVIATOR looked so intriguing, I started doing some research on it and it looks like it's the must see film of the year. The say Leonardo DiCaprio is unbelievable as Howard Hughes. This movie is about his early years, but hints at some of the reasons he became the kook that he became. I can't wait to see it!
I wonder of any Oliver Stone movie since Platoon has been profitable. Amazing that Hollywood would hand this guy so much money to squander. A shame that such an interesting story was so mishandled as well. Who know when it will be attempted again?
Oliver Stone is not the only smammeister in town. State Department has made much bigger sham by recognzing Former Yugolsav Republic of Macedonia under fraudulent name "Macedonia".
Interestigly enough, both shams were synchronized. This is an exaple how media hype can be used as Force multiplier to shape public perception.
Macedonia is historical Hellenic province,rooted in history for more then two millennia. "Macedonia" State Department recogized is communist forgery created after WWII. Yet, State Department inked communist fraud, not historical fact and created row with NATO ally. This is a Danaian Gift departing Trojan Horse left to Bush Administration.
Under tainted logic "Alexander The Great was Macedonian, State Department recognized Macedonia" the sizable majority of Americans will conclude that present day "Macedonia" is the country of Alexander The Great.
The whole mess was started by Communist dictator Tito who afer WWII chopped off part of Serbia to create new state under fraudulent name Macedonia. He stole the land from Serbia, the name from Greece and then forge new "Macedonian" nation. Inhabitants of "Macedonia" were Serbs, Bulgrars, Greeks, Tzintzars, Gypsies and Turks.
Communists first invented Macedonian langage (butchered dialect of Bulgarian). Once the nation without historical root was invented, Communists in charge started with falsifying history. As a result, many "Macedonians" today sincerely believe that they are descendants of Alexander The Great and consider Churches and Monasteries built by Serbian kings are their own. To top the achievement, communists invented Macedonian Orthodox Church (not recogized by any Orthodox Church).
This is one of the larger scale forgeries of the 20th century, delusion of the masses as if Americans started to believe to be descendant of Mayan Empire.
"Alexander" is entertainment one may choose to patron or not. The Box Office will be the judge.
"Macedonia" is State Department endorsed fraud and Americans have no say wether to be a part of it or not. This shameful decision has to be REVOKED.
I don't know about your above reference but what I do know that technically the Roman Empire really didn't "fall" at least not as is commonly 'taught'.
The wildly held misconception is that Rome 'Fell' shortly after the sacking of Rome in 410 AD by Attila (but more accurately it would be 475 AD with the 'last' emperor Julius Nepos). However that's incorrect as by that time the empire was split into two parts1, Western and Eastern with two Emperors. The Eastern Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire and lasted until 1453, when it fell to the Ottoman Turks.
So if one starts with the first emperor, Julius Caesar, "Rome" lasted 1500 years.
(Hitler's 1000 year Reich reference was to Rome and Julius Caesar and Heil Hitler was akin to Hail Caesar and Russian Czar is derived from 'Caesar')
Also, about the time when Rome was sacked in 410, the Visigoths who were then Roman 'citizens' moved almost en masse to present day Spain. So todays 'Spaniards' are really descendants of Eastern 'Europeans'. Oh, and Hungarians are descended from the Huns.
1- In 330 AD the Roman emperor Constantine I, in an attempt to strengthen the empire, refounded Byzantium as Constantinople, the 'New Rome' and capital of the eastern half of the empire.
At his death in 395 Emperor Theodosius I divided the empire between his two sons, and it was never reunited.
Theodosius also made Christianity the sole religion of the empire, and Constantinople assumed preeminence over other Christian centers in the East as Rome did in the West.
Note: I'm not trying to be a smart ___ or anything, I'm just slightly irked at the education system in general, in that 'we' were all taught incorrect history in school.
What about, Alexander "The Swishbuckler"?
Julius Caesar: the only Roman Emperor who was never Roman Emperor....
I'm aware of that. The books I referred to deal with the end of the Roman Republic and it's transition into a full-fledged empire. The series began with the rise of Marius and Sulla and ended with Octavian (not yet Augustus) and Antony agreeing to share rule. Even though there should be one more novel dealing with the Octavian vs. Antony and Cleopatra civil war McCollough ran out of gas and decided to end the series. Still highly recommended, though.
Now, why the hell would anyone cast a girl as Howard Hughes?
Surprisingly, Di Caprio is a good actor. Watch "Catch Me if You Can" if you get the chance.
"Oliver Stone's Alexander, which opens today, isn't just bad. It's Springtime for Hitler bad. I haven't guffawed this hard since I saw Airplane for the first time 24 years ago. This is one of the colossal catastrophes of all time."
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