His passion captivated a woman. His courage inspired a country. His heart defied a king. This is Mel Gibson's brilliant epic movie.

Rating: Null/10 (29 April 2004)

Mel Gibson's Braveheart', is a movie that I feel inspired by every time I watch it. William Wallace certainly was a man that was driven by all sorts of emotions, a man who loved the women in his life, was forced in the end to fight for country, but did it in a grand style and was never intimidated by his enemy, that being the English, his only goal, for Scottish FREEDOM!' Braveheart is a rich, emotionally charged historical epic filled with passion, betrayal and courage, one that is too savour.
Braveheart is the sweeping saga about Scotland's brutal battle for impendence in the 13th century. When William Wallace's wife is ravaged and murdered by English troops, his quest for revenge quickly turns into an impassioned fight for his country. Tales of Wallace's bravery inspire every commoner to take arms against the English and escalate their crusade into a full scale war.
Firstly I want to praise Mel Gibson for the work he put into making this movie. His vision as director was first-class and gave the movie a grandness' that it deserved. It is also a great achievement for Gibson to star in the movie, playing the integral character of Wallace, a difficult role. For his direction of Braveheart, Mel won the 1995 academy award for best director.
Under Gibson was Academy Award winning cinematographer John Toll, who certainly gave Braveheart' the right look onscreen. The camera shots of the open plans, were just fantastic, and made the Scottish land look green, lush and rugged. The one that one that sticks in my mind the most, has to be the moment in the film which shows William Wallace climbing to the top of a mountain, what we see as this unfolds, really did stun me, but in a good way.
The story contains characters that I am unsure are fact or fiction. But whatever they are, were very convincing onscreen. William Wallace, aka Braveheart' (Gibson) is a man that is shook up as a child by the disturbing visions he sees happens to his people, especially his father Malcolm Wallace (Sean Lawlor). We see quite quickly that Wallace as a man, was born to fight, with a dead eye' when it comes to throwing with any sort of stone. Gibson is terrific in his role here, playing it with grandeur, flamboyance, style and slight humour that suits the film. Braveheart' also looks intense, with the blue paint draped across his face.
Yet Wallace did not want to fight. He marries his childhood love, the beautiful Murron (Catherine McCormack) that he weds in secret. However there life together would be cut short by the warriors of the king of England, who capture, violate and kill Murron for not submitting to their desires. This death was hard for me to watch, but without it, we would not have the rest of the film. The small role that McCormack plays in the film is vital, as she softens the brutalness of war onscreen.
After this event, Wallace is filled with raged and turns on all the English troops. Helping Wallace was his friend Hamish (Brendan Gleeson), a brute of a guy that is the size of two warriors, who never at any stage, takes a backward steps in the war. While Robert the Bruce (Angus McFadyen) is a very interesting character, a guy who you think you know, but then surprises you.

On the English side, the enemy that Wallace wants to defeat, is King Edward I (Patrick McGoohan), or longshanks' as he is referred to. He is a very aggressive type of king, when in a fit of rage throws a friend of the Prince of Wales (Peter Hanly), out a high rise window, as he has no time to listen to this inferior sort of person. McGoohan is a nasty king and does not like what Wallace is achieving by the war. His son is a weakling, so afraid of what he is seeing take place.
The Prince was arranged in marriage to a French woman, for political reasons. Her name is Princess Isabella (Sophie Marceau) a beautiful woman, who is used to try and bribe Wallace to stop the war. He immediately picks up that she is attracted to him. The Princess hates her husband, but is truly in love with Wallace. When Wallace is close to death, the Princess tries to help him handle the ordeal. Marceau is great in this role as she is nice to look at and convincing in her role.
I love all the battle scenes in Braveheart', as they are filmed in a big and bold way by Gibson. That is not to say they are easy to watch. The first battle at death of Braveheart's wife is tough to watch. Yet there were times I was laughing (unintentionally) as the English were frightened for their lives at the sight of Braveheart' and his men. The major war scenes are great, but also leave nothing to the imagination, as we see arrows, swords and axes wounding and killing many men on both sides.

The music to Braveheart was another important element, as it gave the correct Scottish feel to the film. The composer on Braveheart was James Horner, whose music gives the film true emotion when it needs it. The bagpipes are used in a very effective way here especially.
Mel Gibson is currently in the spotlight with his movie The Passion of The Christ'. I felt I would prepare myself for that movie by going back and watching this film and I am glad that I did. The resemblance that this film has with the story of Jesus is amazing. Braveheart' is the ultimate Hollywood movie experience, a most powerful film, made by a man with a passion, about a man with an intense passion, who was willing enough to sacrifice himself in order that his country could have freedom. What a sacrifice it was too!
CMRS gives Braveheart': 5 (Brilliant Film)