Somewhere in there is a decent movie.

Rating: 4/10 (5 December 2004)

I had great hopes for Alexander. A bold, influential, and fearless historical figure having his story told by a director with the same qualities. I expected it to be great. It could have been great. It wasn't. It treid so hard to be bold, influential, and fearless, but it came out as scatterbrained, confused, and fickle.
Editing is important to storytelling in films. In Alexander, we are taken from King Phillip telling him that he'll never be king to Alexander leading his armies as king in the largest battle of his life. This is a major jump with no credible link. We do not even know who is fighting or why its so important. Who is King Darius? Why does Alexander want Asia so badly? Why do his men trust him so much? We get some of this in hurried dialogue, but we need to see it before this scene. I know some of the history and the battles which lead up that one are important.
Another problem with movies that try to tell someone's life story is that they lose focus. This would have been a good movie if it dealt with Alexander's life up to the Battle of Gaugamela it would have been a tighter presentation. All of the relationships and personal dynamics could have been explored against the backdrop of the war with Persia. Darius could have become more than a stoic face that filled the frame for what I guess was an attempt at menace. Again focus on the story and the characters, not the events and personal antics. Mario Van Peeble's Badassssss is a perfect example. Its a different type of movie but deals with the same type of man.
The movie centers around one event, one struggle in his life, against which the rest of his personalty and relationships play out. A much tighter and more hard hitting presentation overall.
I wanted to be able to give this a 8 at least. Instead, I'm forced to go with a 4.