In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great (1998) User Reviews

Trails and Tales

[remboman · 9/10 · 21 August 2005]

Unlike Palin's travels which are mostly about the now, this is all about the journey of a young godlike king of some 2500 years ago, for whom his world was not big enough. Like Palin's travels though, Michael Wood takes you through some of the most spectacular landscapes and oldest cities and societies on this planet weaving a tale of conquest, hardship, friendship and visions of greatness (on the part of Alexander). Great imagery and gripping story telling make this one to watch for anyone who is interested in (ancient) history and one of it's greatest men. Go watch it: it made me want to follow his trail myself...

Greetz, Remboman

Oh my aching feet

[=G= · 8/10 · 21 June 2005]

Peripatetic documentary host Michael Wood treks across Asia retracing the ~20,000 mile campaign of Alexander III of Macedonia in this historically rich film exploration of one of history's greatest conquerors. Wood and crew take you from Greece to the Holy Land, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, India, and more as he uncovers shreds of evidence from artifacts to ancient stories still told by storytellers and pieces them together into a mosaic of the short 32 year life of the legendary conqueror of Persia (circa 356-323 BCE). The always affable and upbeat historian/host Wood travels by everything from burro to boat to helicopter to foot over some of the most barren and rugged terrain in Asia tirelessly brining us the history and legends of Alexander. "In the Footsteps of..." is not only a well composed documentary but also a travelogue of places you'll not likely want to visit and will probably never see. Easy to understand didactics and great locations up close and personal makes this a should see for all ancient history buffs. (B+)

Spellbinding

[canuckteach · 10/10 · 25 December 2004]

I caught this on the History Channel -- absolutely spellbinding! the Narrator attempts to re-trace Alexander's conquests by following the 20,000+ mile route of his army through Asia Minor, Africa and into the heart of Asia itself. Like Michael Palin (of 'Pole-to-Pole' fame), he attempts to do without modern methods of travel as much as possible. Along the way, we hear narratives recited from the writings of Alexander's personal historians, plus assorted commentaries on the battles and strategies. Some of Alexander's guys are still there..! well, their offspring are anyway, along with oodles of Greek culture.

Watch for an eerie part when the team proposes following Alexander's poorly-chosen coastal 'return' route. The locals tell them to take water with them because there still isn't any to be found there. Some things haven't changed much in 2300 years.

Superb television - informative and gripping

[enochsneed · 10/10 · 27 January 2018]

I didn't see this on first transmission, I just watched the series on DVD. First of all, it tells the story of Alexander the Great very well (I sort of knew of him as a figure in history, now I feel I know the man much more) and, second of all, I don't think it could be made today. In 1997 Michael Wood and his team only just made it through Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Twenty years later the political situation has deteriorated so much no TV company would dare send anyone to those regions for a documentary series. As it is Wood and the crew came under fire from Afghan bandits, and some of the clan leaders he meets are definitely cut-your-throat-as-soon-as-look-at-you types. I've loved Michael Wood's programmes on the Dark Ages since the late 70's. Some of his other output has been variable, but this took real guts to make and is a definite must-see.

Incredible Greeks, Woods' enthusiasm is infectious

[random-70778 · 16 January 2020]

Greeks like Alexander truly did change the world in fundamental ways. Michael Wood's work of the 1990's is truly enthusiastic and captures the viewers attention. Whether you don't know the subject or if you have a strong academic background in it, you are going to find this series compelling. Woods does a much better job than some of today's PBS history/archaeology presenters who seem to need to center on revisionism for the sake of revisionism, and latch onto some fairly fringe theories. EG, They have style but half of what Neil Oliver and Alice Roberts claim are in fact fringe theories or theories already debunked in just a few years. Same with Bettina Hughes

One thing I will critique when it comes to Woods' Alexander: Not enough attention is paid to his effect on the non-Greek Near East and the profound Hellenizing and organizing as Greek type polis structures. He opened Egypt and integrated it into the wider world, and Hellenized heretofore hermetic and limited Judiasm giving its core thinkers a language and context in which to engage the world, allowing Judiasm to receive and give wisdom. Morover Alexander and the other Greeks with him and following on, integrated the entire near and middle east, creating a open and receptive synthesis that lead to an explosion of knowledge, commerce, frankly, civilization, that had not been present since the bronze age collapse a millennia earlier. And that open system and polis organization was a life giving breath to civilization as it replace the backward looking oppressive Persian system that had stymied growth and thought. So I do wish had given that as much attention as the fascinating but ultimately passing excursion into Central Asia and beyond.

Good travelogue

[acceron · 1/10 · 18 August 2013]

The only thing I am keeping from this, is that it is a decent travelogue. If you cut off the sound it is even better. The idea of traveling in his footsteps was indeed unique. However, as a documentary of Alexander's quest, it is way bellow par. He is basing much of the story on folklore, hearsay, and unreliable late sources. He tells the tale of how Alexander is viewed today by modern religions and by local folk who live in the places he conquered 2300 years ago. It is interesting to hear and it is entertaining to see the local folk and the scenery, regardless. The only thing missing from this documentary is Alexander. There are definitely better documentaries out there for sure.

Visit Remote Places! See Exotic People!

[rmax304823 · 15 August 2011]

I kind of enjoyed the program. Michael Wood seems like a genuinely nice guy who is enthusiastic about his retracing of Alexander the Great's march from the northern border of Greece to India. He sits on a mule, hikes through chest-high breakers around rocky outcroppings, travels with his crew through desert wastelands. He meets people who dress oddly and speak languages you never heard of. They sit around the fire, smoke, and sing songs of Alexander the Great, whose legend seems to have lived on.

I expect that if you asked most people about Alexander's ethnic background they'd say "Greek." But, as this documentary mentions, he wasn't Greek at all. Like his father he was a northern barbarian. When I was in Macedonia I was surprised to find that it didn't even LOOK much like Greece. It seemed to be far more mountainous, cooler, and heavily forested.

Wood does his best to evoke Alexander's character but, after all, the guy lived more than 2,000 years ago and the data base is limited. So we don't really learn that much about Alexander. The diarists on his march recorded more in the way of movement and obstacles than impressions of manners or quotidian facts.

The host is more interested in the remnants of legend than in ethnography. Those old guys around the fire sing about someone names Alexander (it comes out as "Xander") but we don't know what language they're speaking, how many wives they have, or what they ate for breakfast.

Wood's interest in features of the terrain are about the same as those of any tourist. Gee, this is an impressive desert. Or, Wow, it gets cold here at night, even in summer. I don't mean to suggest that it's an aimless travelogue. It has a purpose -- retracing Alexander's route from Greece to India. That's more than can be said in the episode dealing with "Shangri-La." Shangri-La wasn't a legend until a British novelist invented it in the 1930s. Shangri-La, still a fascinating look at an utterly remote landscape, was ALL travelogue.

If it's permitted, I'd like to recommend a feature film that deals with Alexander the Great's legacy around the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan. It's "The Man Who Would Be King," from the Kipling story, directed by John Huston and starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine. Awfully entertaining.