Good, not great, flawed by inaccuracies

Rating: 8/10 (8 June 2000)

I enjoyed Braveheart and would recommend the movie as epic entertainment more than historical insight. The fighting scenes were terrifically staged and the film captures the theme of Scottish nationalism. (Contrary to an earlier opinion, war paint was in fact used by Celts in battle and was not added for melodramatic effect; you could argue that it was melodramatic but it was not in error.)
In fact, the historical Wallace not only embodied nationalism but in large part created it, at least a century before Joan of Arc, who usually gets the credit. Mel Gibson was good, not great, as Hollywood's Wallace, and the supporting cast is outstanding.
That being said, a lot of historical facts need to be sorted out if you want to know the REAL story of William Wallace.
1. Wallace was no reluctant warrior; before his girlfriend (not wife) was murdered, he had already built a fearful reputation for killing Englishmen in Scotland. The historical record shows that Wallace loved his work and had always been very good at it. His girlfriend's murder occurs late in his career.
2. William Wallace actually co-ruled an independent Scotland for a few months (there are treaties signed by Wallace) between the battles of Stirling Bridge and Falkirk.
3. Robert the Bruce was not about to be named a puppet King of Scotland on the fields of Bannockburn, as shown in the final scenes of the movie. He had already declared himself an independent king and Edward II's army was there to engage and destroy him. Outnumbered 2-1, Robert destroyed the English army at Bannockburn in 1314, creating a de facto independent Scotland that was confirmed by treaty in 1328.
4. Edward II did not marry until after Wallace was dead, so the whole ridiculous subplot with Sophie Marceau could not possibly have been true. It doesn't even pass the laugh test. However, apparently Edward II was a terrible king; Churchill himself refers to him as "a perverted weakling" and "an unworthy successor to Edward I". So the notion in an earlier post that this is an American propaganda slant is not true.
These are not minor points and the movie is flawed by its misrepresentations. It is still enjoyable and probably captures the essence of the cause that Wallace fought and died for.
8 out of 10