Played too safe

Rating: 5/10 (22 May 2005)

OK, first things first. You're making a movie on Alexander with modern Hollywood technologies, and lots of dough, sponsors, consultants, the works... it is hard to make it unwatchable. But where I believe this fails to make even the annals of greatness is its pusillanimous approach to taking a stance on any issue of conflict. As a result the characters fail to form properly, and lack conviction. The movie proceeds as a dazzling display of the times. Alexander's character is way too safe. In reality he was far more ruthless, merciless and sadistic. Nowadays its kind of fashionable to show heroes as weak and emotional, and that makes this appalling. His marriage, his invasion of India and his war with Porus, his decision to choose the desert route back and his death are all unexplained. If you're simply going to narrate history with all its uncertainties and probabilities then make a freaking' documentary dude. If you make a movie have your own interpretation and get on with it. Playing Anthony Hopkins as Ptolemy giving an account of the affairs was a pathetically defensive move, so the director could always get away wherever he wanted. The movie should have been first hand flowing along with Alexander and his mind. So what happens is that you always feel you are observing Alexander from the outside, but not observing and sensing and feeling 'with' him.
The thing I'd say is pretty honest, is that they didn't show Alexander making major victories or inroads in India. They showed it as it was, his army getting flogged at the hands of Porus. In reality Porus won that war, annexed some of Alexander's territories and sounded the retreat for the Macedons back home, their party was over. Of course again dilly dallying, the director does show the Indian army retreat in the end, again playing to the whims of historians as the way history should be. I saw a clip of Oliver Stone's interview about this film, and he says he always wanted to do it as a child and read loads about Alexander since God knows when. After all that their is a complete lack of any form of Judgement, originality and conviction. I am particularly peeved about his invasion in India and his death. Scenes just come and go without anybody knowing what is actually happening, nothing follows logically from the other. What actually happens after the war? Come to think of it at the end of it this movie leaves you with NOTHING! Just a dazzle of great shots and cinematography and a historic nostalgia of the times, which you get seeing any historic movie no matter which. It is for that reason I couldn't give this movie more than 5. Should you watch it? Yes, for all the money they spent on it. Apparently each and every prop was manufactured specially.