Braveheart
1995 · Directed by Mel Gibson
Original language: English
- drama
- history
- war
The story
Enraged at the slaughter of Murron, his new bride and childhood love, Scottish warrior William Wallace slays a platoon of the local English lord's soldiers. This leads the village to revolt and, eventually, the entire country to rise up against English rule.
What it’s like
Wide Scottish highlands under heavy grey skies, rolling green hills and muddy battlefields, with the camera sweeping over massed armies in long, rhythmic crane shots and then dropping into tight, sweaty close-ups of faces smeared with woad. The palette leans on earthy greens, peat browns and cold blue-grey, broken by bursts of blood red and warm firelight in cramped stone interiors. Sound carries much of the weight: bagpipes and drums swell over the landscape, while a lush orchestral score rises to big, emotional peaks and drops to near silence around grief. The battle sequences are long and physically punishing, with brutal close-quarter violence, bloody wounds and graphic executions, and there is sexual content and nudity in its romance. The pacing is sweeping and episodic, with stretches of quiet tenderness giving way to rousing speeches and scenes of injustice that linger. Its emotional register is stirring and defiant, a mix of rage, loss and fierce idealism, with a lonely hero gradually becoming a symbol of a nation. Best for those who want a big, romantic historical epic with heroic stakes and don't mind their war movies bloody.
More films like Braveheart
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved Braveheartand we’ll explain which ones fit you.
