Outstanding.

Rating: 10/10 (29 November 2004)

Director Oliver Stone's retelling of Alexander The Great's life begins with a quote from The Aenid, "Fortune favours the bold." And bold is exactly what this film is.
Legendary for more than two millennium for the amazing deeds that he packed into his short life (he died at the age of 32), Alexander The Great, King of Macedon, is the most celebrated figure of classical antiquity. Stone's film version of Alexander's life presents an intimate and fascinating portrait of the man who, in less than two decades, created the greatest empire the world has ever seen, acquiring a semi-mythic status that persists to this day.
Drawing on theories, fact and folklore, the film - which clocks in at three hours - explores all aspects of Alexander's eventful life and reign in a non-chronological, non-linear account. Among the many topics depicted are: Alexander's family life (including his stormy relationship with his father, King Philip, and the influence of his mother, Queen Olympias), his brilliant leadership, outwitting one opponent after another and inspiring his devoted troops to accomplish amazing physical feats, and his daily life off-duty - whether sharing the hardships of his men or indulging in the legendary bouts of feasting that may have contributed to his early death. But perhaps the theme most present is the relationship between Alexander (Colin Farrell) and Hephaistion (his most adored lover, portrayed by Jared Leto) which is analogous to the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus (two mythic heroes from Homer's The Illyiad, most recently depicted in Wolfgang Peterson's Troy).
The film begins with a young Alexander getting advice on life from a variety of sources. His mother, played by Angelina Jolie, uses snakes to demonstrate to importance of decisive actions during battle: "If you hesitate, she will strike. Never hesitate," she tells him, adding, "My little Achilles." Alexander's early potential is seen in his ability to tame wild horses (like Hector in The Illyiad). With the companionship of Hephaistion, Alexander grows to become a mighty conqueror, traveling through Macedonia, Egypt, Babylonia, Persia and India - places others before him had never ventured.
Here is the boldness that sets this film apart from other classical epics. Unlike Troy, which changed the lover-lover relationship of Achilles and Patroclus to cousins for the consumption of conservative American audiences, Alexander makes no attempt to alter history. Alexander, like many of his time, was bisexual, unphased by the boundaries of gender. While Oliver Stone chose not to include a homosexual love scene in this film, there is plenty of expressed emotions, caresses and hugging, innuendos and metaphors, and even a couple of smooches. Secondly, his depiction of Alexander as anti racist and respectful of women is also a bold choice. Where Troy was misogynistic and blatantly propagated an "us" versus "them" mentality, Alexander displays the utmost respect for women and views rape as one of the most heinous crimes one can commit. But of course, like any hero, he begins to suffer the catastrophic fates of his revered Gods: Achilles, Medea, Oedipus and Prometheus.
There is plenty of eye-candy in this film and Stone spares no expense to draw his spectators into this world of glory, courage, passion, murder, conspiracy and adventure. Several times throughout, we are literally offered a bird-eye view of Alexander's battles. In these battles, Stone has a tendency to overuse the close-up angle to blur the action, simulating the confusion, intensity and rapidity of hand-to-hand combat. Sounds of crushed bones, exploding veins, bodies thrashing, chariots rumbling and horses (sometimes elephants!) wailing penetrate each battle scene.
Stone also has a brilliant eye for depicting the sumptuousness of Alexander's royal life. Jewel-encrusted robes, gilded ornate palaces with intricate detail and reliefs, succulent feasts of wild boar and sweet wines, and tantalizing harems filled with bevies of beauties (unfortunately, someone forgot to tell Stone that harem women didn't shave their pits, pluck their eyebrows, wax their bikini zones, or get cavity fillings in those days). Each scene is given a sweeping tribal score, composed by Vangelis (Chariots Of Fire), which furthers our plunge into this world.
Of course, no epic feature is complete without fire-infused performances by the actors (not counting Titanic, of course.). Colin Farrell, sporting a historical version of the mullet, surprised me with his honest and passionate Alexander. He tackles the multi-facedness of his character with the skill of a warrior poet. Rosario Dawson wins our hearts immediately after performing her intricate Dance Of The Seven Veils, yet doesn't get the screen time she deserves. Val Kilmer also delivers a complex performance as a father who loves and curses his son simultaneously. Angelina Jolie gives the most stellar dramatic performance of her career (although for some reason, she speaks through a Russian accent). The only stale performance is delivered, unexpectedly, from Anthony Hopkins, who plays an elderly Ptolemy, narrating the action. Hopkins monotonously narrates like a ninth grade History teacher (reminiscent of Ben Stein in "Ferris Bueler's Day Off") with numbers, dates, and places. Bor-ring.
The only time this film falters is when it delves into Hollywood formulas. But unlike other Hollywood epics (Gladiator), Alexander is not fiction or myth - he was real.
I wonder if Alexander weeps when he looks through the spectre of time and sees that we've given his title of "The Great One" to Wayne Gretzsky.
**** out of *****