Braveheart 2: Robert the Bruce

[JayzusB.Christ]

Can't get YouTube working so I can't work out whether this is a real thing or not.

They filmed a lot of the original near my town, and as a long-haired youth I always regretted not applying to be an extra, even though I was a scrawny wee bastard and would have been about as much use in battle as a daddy longlegs with a plastic butter knife.  (But I did make up for it by being in Vikings later on in life.)

[Frank]

Although newspaper headlines call it Braveheart 2, this film is a sequel to Braveheart in the same way Lincoln was a sequel to Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

None of the same people involved, but in the case of the anti-Semitic dwarf, that could be construed as a plus. Macfadyen seems like he's wired to the moon*


* They're not showing it in cinemas because it's a straight to video job, same as everything else he's ever been in

[Hawkmumbler]

Is it an unpopular opinion that Gibson's "historical's" are all absolute fucking kack?

I mean....Apocalypto*? More Apocalyptic Poo.

[spoiler]FUCKING TIME TRAVELLING CONQUISTADORS![/spoiler]

[Richard]

I loved Apocalypto!

[TordelBack]

Gibson is an irredeemable prick, but Apocalypto is a magnifcent film. A bizarre historical mishmash, but still an extraordinary piece of work with great performances, incredible visuals and the kind of relentless forward momentum that most action films can only dream of.

[JOE SOAP]

Apocalypto is a magnifcent film.

QFT

[Hawkmumbler]

Oh really Tordels? I would have thought you of all people would be pulling your hair out at the discrepancies  between Ancient Mayan, "Modern" Mayan and Aztec mythologies and timelines.

At least we can all agree The Patriot is historical rewriting at it's absolute worst, right? 

[Frank]

At least we can all agree The Patriot is historical rewriting at it's absolute worst, right? 

Roland Emmerich directed The Patriot, mate. Apocalypto is just a great action/horror/suspense movie; very lean and efficient, with a simple, compelling premise and characters with whom the viewer strikes up an immediate empathy.

I'd say without Apocalypto (i) reminding everyone that cinema's capable of creating compelling characters and strong narratives without explicatory dialogue, we might not have got Fury Road, although without Gibson's collaborations with Miller we probably wouldn't have Apocalypto, so that's a bit of an Ouroboros.

Apocalypto is ahistorical fantasy, but then so is Jason And The Argonauts.



(i) And, to a lesser extent, The Passion Of The Christ

[Hawkmumbler]

At least we can all agree The Patriot is historical rewriting at it's absolute worst, right? 

Roland Emmerich directed The Patriot, mate.

Script was written by Robert Rodat and Mel Gibson, the later of whom also extensively re-wrote it during production.

[Frank]

Rodat's the sole-credited screenwriter (i), but okay. You should give Apocalypto another go as a pure action movie, like First Blood or Die Hard.


(i) I've only ever heard Gibson influenced production in the same way stars like Tom Cruise did back in the day - 'never put me in a scene with anyone over five foot, no Jews on set' - that kind of thing

[TordelBack]

I would have thought you of all people would be pulling your hair out at the discrepancies  between Ancient Mayan, "Modern" Mayan and Aztec mythologies and timelines.

Like I said, it's a bizarre mishmash of tImes and places, but I think it makes something genuinely powerful out of its butchered sources. Long since given up expecting historical veracity from my action movies, but I do expect a visually compelling thrill ride where I really care who lives and who dies, and brother this is one.

[JayzusB.Christ]

I liked Apocalypto too.  It was a couple of years after watching I learned how mangled the history was.  Braveheart was good violent fun; though I was never under any illusions about its historical accuracy.

[sheridan]

I trust we all know about the following scene in Apocalypto?

[sheridan]

I trust we all know about the following scene in Apocalypto?

(In theatrical release, not on DVD, apparently back for the bluray).

[JayzusB.Christ]

I trust we all know about the following scene in Apocalypto?

Yes indeed.  Don't know if it's genius or insanity but I liked it