Brilliant

Rating: 10/10 (8 January 2009)

Rarely do I find a film this long that can hold my attention the entire way through. "Braveheart" is composed of one brilliant scene after another, all due to Mel Gibson's excellent directing, as well as his superb acting. From an early scene in which the little girl hands young William Wallace a flower at the grave site to Wallace pleading to the enemy to apologize to Scotland's people in an almost unreal way, great care and direction was clearly given to every scene in this film. The battle scenes do not drag on too long as in films such as "Lord of the Rings" but instead are just long enough to keep us engaged. The battle scenes are masterfully balanced with scenes of dialogue and character development, which is important because it helps cause us to care about the characters. The film is brutal and violent by nature, so most likely it is not for everyone. Nevertheless, it's nearly perfect for me. Gibson draws the detail out just long enough to tell his whole story and still keep us engaged long enough to watch it all. A great, brilliant film, worthy of many of the Oscars it received. I can honestly call this one of the best films I have ever seen.
**** out of ****