Alaxander is not an intelligent movie. From the director of "Natural Born Killers" one expects a certain level of directorial expertise that does not happen in this movie. Alaxander suffers greatly from pacing issues and an overly modern perspective of the great general. I found myself glancing at my watch before the first battle. Most suffering is thanks only to Oliver Stone's obsession with making the character homosexual and obnoxiously idealistic. His portrayal as a homosexual was not distressing from a historical view (Many Greeks and Macedonians of the time viewed women as child bearers only, not love worthy), but was instead distressing due to the immense focus it received. Alaxander became more a movie about same-sex love than it did about the events through his life. The biggest problem I had with the movie, though, is the terrible camera work during battles. Shaky cameras were overused to produce battles that looked as though they were filmed during a hurricane. Other artistic interpretations detracted from the visceral moments found therein. During the final battle we find the images have changed to shades of red, pink, and purple; not a good choice for any battle scene.
The acting, however, was brilliant. I was very happy to see Val Kilmer once again in a major picture. No one stood out as tacky in their portrayals and all did a phenomenal job. The character accents were obnoxious though (Stone's fault).
I would not recommend this movie to anyone, there are far better historical war movies than Alexander.
The acting, however, was brilliant. I was very happy to see Val Kilmer once again in a major picture. No one stood out as tacky in their portrayals and all did a phenomenal job. The character accents were obnoxious though (Stone's fault).
I would not recommend this movie to anyone, there are far better historical war movies than Alexander.