Oliver Stone’s Alexander and it’s Accuracy in portraying Alexander the Great Essay

The 2004 flash Alexander, directed by Oliver Stone, depicts the behavior of Alexander the Great. This essay will discuss the accuracy of Oliver Stones artistic vision in this depiction of Alexanders action and achievements. The discussion will focus on Alexanders 7 year campaign, particularly its battles his relationship with otherwises, including his innerity within the withdraw and the legacy Alexander and his armies go forth on the world. Historically, in that respect are many omissions within Oliver Stones Alexander, all the same, the major(ip)ity of these are accounted for by means of Stones artistic vision.Many minor campaigns during the 7 year period were completely left-hand(a) out, and that two battles were shown finishedout the movie. Within these two battles, many major components of other battles were in whatsoever way conflated so as to equate to having experienced those battles as well, since if Stone were to entangle every battle, non unaccompanied wou ld the film be far longer than its current form, but it would also hand over essential a much larger budget. This absence of battles is the major inaccuracy in Stones Alexander.Whilst Stone only conveys two battles in the movie, history conveys that Alexander participated in a vast quantity of battles, pitched battles as well as sieges, throughout the 7 year march. Stone choice in depicting only these two battles of the many others was through his aim to convey the key points of Alexanders major campaigns in a condensed form as possible. Whilst the battles themselves were inaccurate, many of these inaccuracies were choices of Stones. The main inaccuracy for the the Battle of Gaugemela, the first battle visualized in Alexander, is the Iranian army itself.Alexander shows them as a disorganised rabble, when, historically, the Persians would have been exceedingly well organised. Members of the Persian army would have had uniforms, rather than the variable clothing they wore, and musi cians would play so that the army would march in rank. Conversely, many of the solutions before, during and after the battle were accurate. For example, before the battle, the night before in the tent where Alexander converses with his generals, he is urged to make a night attack and steal a victory Alexander, if we must fight, do so with stealth. Use your numbers well we should attack tonight when they least expect us. Alexander refuses.This communion is accurate in at least its meaning, as is recorded by Arrian It is said that Parmenio came to him in his tent, and urged him to make a night attack on the Persians but the reply which he made to him was that it would be mean to steal a victory (Arrian, Book 3, Section 10). The conversation is as such a recorded event, and though Stone changed dialogues, the meaning behind each is the same.The major inaccuracy in the Battle of Hydaspes, the turn battle, is that it takes place in a jungled terrain, fighting the people of India. In h istorical fact, the Battle of Hydaspes occurred on a open plain. Stone is said to have chosen the location of the battle to be in a forest as a contrast to the Battle of Gaugemela, which also occurred on a plain. Arrian records the battle to have taken place near the river Hydaspes, with Alexander making a secret crossing in the night, however Alexander makes no mention of the crossing, or even of the existence of the river.Arrian also mentions that the the forces from both armies were split, but the film shows no evidence of this. A second inaccuracy was the conflict between the leader of the Indian army and Alexander. harmonize to reports by Arrian, Alexander never confronted nor charged the king of the Indians as is shown in the film, but instead toughened him with dignity and honour, eventually giving him the rule over a large territory. Nor did Bucephalus die from the major outrage as shown in Alexander, but from old age and minor wounds he sustained throughout his life.The f ilm shows Alexander charging the king, and Buchephalus saving his masters life at the cost of his own. This was most likely through with(p) as a method to increase the dramatic effect of the scene, but also as a method of including another major battle in Alexanders timeline, the siege of Malli. Within the battles depicted in Alexander, Stone directed minor changes in the factuality of battle events. For example, he depicts Alexander beingness gravely wounded in the Battle of Hydaspes.This grave wounding of Alexander occurred later, at the siege of Malli. This event is combined into the Battle of Hydaspes to portray more of Alexanders history, and those knowledgeable of it could notice and appreciate this and other acknowledgements of history even though they arent accurate. Apart from the battles, thither were other events of history or caption in Alexanders life which are not represented. For example, the Gordian knot.This well know subtitle of Alexander slicing open the untie -able knot with his sword and its linked prophecy of ruling Asia is not included. This whitethorn be because the truth is not known of the event, whether Alexander cut it, pulled apart what it was tied to and then untie it or whether it existed at all, although there is evidence that it existed. Apart from these events not included or merely conflated there are portion of Alexander in which the way Alexander is depicted historically, or not as the shimmy may be.To the points where it was inaccurate, Alexander is scripted throughout his speeches to encourage his men in their campaign to stamp down the world. These scripts lead to him being given a purpose behind the campaign, that of a brotherhood of man. Historically, there is no evidence to this. Alexander was known to merely have conquered because he could, a brilliant commander traveling an endless path of conquest (Eugene N. Borza, Movie Commentary Alexander, page 4).The personality of Alexander is about completely unknown , and as historians we are unable to characterise what made him the charismatic leader capable of take his armies on his 7 year march. Another aspect of Alexanders personality was his relationships with individuals. The film shows uttermost(prenominal) relationships with his find and father, as well as childhood friend Hephaistion. Alexanders relationship with his develop and father both vary throughout the film, but focus mostly on pleasing his mother and either avenging or surpassing his father.During his early life, Alexander is shown very close to his mother, with her urging him on to pursue and whispering propaganda in his ear against his father, while Alexander is taught to be a leader through the actions of his father. subsequent on, he grows separate from both, however influenced by them tremendously. For example, when Philip dies, Alexander falls into a rage, even though he had fallen out recently with his father in a drink influenced conflict, and it embitters him ag ainst his mother, this bitterness continuing into the film.Further, in developing the relationship with Hephaistion, Stone also spends a lot of time enforcing the point that Alexander is bi-sexual, through the homoerotic subtext, though this was not limited to Hephaistion but incorporated others within the film. Whilst this may have been the case in history, as in Ancient Greece sexuality was merely a matter of course, and you were either sexual or you werent, without vastly distinguishing between the genders, Stone pushes the limits of this concept in order to outline a known part of Alexanders life.It is known that Alexander had at least two male physical relationships, and this may have pushed Stone into depicting the sexuality of Alexander, though in contrast to the homosexual relationships, Alexanders relationship with his first wife Roxanne was inaccurate and over-zealous. Roxanne, his first wife, is historically known as a employ wife and mother, rather than as the character displayed in Alexander (Eugene N. Borza, Movie Commentary Alexander, page 3).In all, Oliver Stones depiction of Alexander in his film Alexander has both accuracy and inaccuracy. The major inaccuracies was the events, or lack thereof, as Oliver Stone either chose not to or was not able to include them, whilst the main accuracies of the film were the inclusion of key points in Alexanders life and relationships. Alexander shows or so of Alexander and his armies impact on the world, and it is a well researched attempt at conveying the incredible life of Alexander the Great accurately.