Gibson, Mel, dir. Braveheart.
Writ. Randall Wallace. Paramount Pictures, 1995. CD-ROM.
The movie Braveheart directed
by and starring Mel Gibson portrays the life of William Wallace, a medieval
Scottish war leader and rebel. The film illustrates the rise of William Wallace
who incites a Scottish rebellion for freedom after his wife is murdered by an
English solider whom she assaulted after he attempted to rape her. William soon
after begins attacking English camps, killing all soldiers and declaring the need
for Scottish independence. The tyrant English king, Edward I, is originally
unable to defeat William and his men until William is captured and imprisoned
by the English and tried for treason. He is sentenced to torture and death but
only after winning the favor and respect of the Princess of Wales, Edward II’s
wife. William is executed at the end of the film, but nobly refuses to beg the
English crown for mercy, and instead utters his last dying wish before being
beheaded: “Freedom!” (Braveheart).
The film is
seen as one of the more historically inaccurate films of the modern era,
featuring many historical falsities. One of the more glaring inaccuracies
within the film is the illustration of William’s social class. Throughout the
film William is pictured as a poor peasant, wearing brown rags with a dirty
face, living in a small hut made out of sticks, mud, and stone. This is a
traditional Hollywood view of medieval peasantry, whereas historians know
William came from a lower noble family, and not of the extreme poverty as shown
in the film. Another inaccuracy portrayed in the film is the idea of ius primae noctis or “right of the first night”. This fictional idea holds that the rightful king of
the land is allowed privileges to all of the brides within his kingdom on the
first night of their marriage. This is shown in the film as Edward I attempts
to solidify his domination over Scotland by declaring ius primae noctis . Upon
William’s return to his home village, and after Edward had declared his right
of the Scottish brides, an English army comes to the village and takes away the
newest bride amidst the village wedding celebration. This is the first act of
the English that anger the Scottish men. In the scene of the Battle of Falkirk,
William gives a speech to his men before the battle, claiming the Scottish
right to rebel. He shouts, “They may take our brides, but they cannot take our
freedom!” (Braveheart). Throughout the film, the idea of ius primae noctis becomes
one of the most important symbols of the robbery of Scottish rights. However, this practice is in no way historical, and was never declared by any medieval
king.
William as a boy, seen in brown rags, with his house (hut) behind him made of stone and straw.
Although the
film portrays many historical inaccuracies and glorified Hollywood ideals, the
producers and costume designers were particularly precise in their creation of
medieval fighting and armor. Much of the movie is dedicated to battle scenes, but
the costuming proved to be quite accurate to the time period of Wallace and the
Wars of Scottish Independence. In the late thirteenth and early fourteenth
centuries, mail was still a dominant form of body armor. The English soldiers
were often portrayed in mail, while the Scottish were seemingly less
sophisticated of a fighting force, and instead wore their daily medieval garb
in battle. The English also were shown in conical steel helmets, with swords and
lances. One of the battle leaders was even shown in a barrel helmet. The
Scottish, conversely, in keeping with the theme of their lack of
sophistication, rarely had swords, and instead fought with large warhammers and
small axes. Some Scottish soldiers even held slings. Both the English and
Scottish were shown with shields, both round and heater shaped, appropriate to
the century. The English, in keeping with the history and tradition of the
English army, were shown with their deadly longbow men yielding a deadly attack
upon the Scottish.
William with his army. Notice the weapons they hold: axes, blunt swords, and even large sticks.
Also
historically accurate was the film’s depiction of the manner in which battle
was executed. The Scottish soldiers were depicted yielding a battering ram upon
an English fortress to gain access in the Battle of Falkirk. In response to the
Scottish invasion, the English throw hot tar and fire over the top of the
soldiers from inside the fortress. Both of these events are highly exact
depictions of siege warfare, and the importance of laying siege and protecting
from it. Aside from the scene with the battering ram, all other battle scenes
occur with face-to-face combat, where the rules of battle were greatly
respected. Both the English and Scottish would meet at the battlefield and
would not launch any surprise or sneak attacks until the priests had completed
their prayers and both sides engaged one another.
One of the
central themes to the movie was the idea of chivalry and courtly love. Before
the rebellion begins, William falls in love with a local village woman, Murron,
and marries her in secret to avoid her being taken due to ius primae noctis . Shortly
after their secret marriage, however, an English solider in the village
attempts to rape Murron. Murron attacks the solider in response to his
attempted rape, and is killed in front of the village as a punishment for
confronting the English soldier. William is thereafter driven to rebel in
response to Murron’s murder, and desires to avenge the death of his bride. He
carries her handkerchief with him throughout the movie, only allowing it to
fall after being beheaded. Courtly love is also demonstrated in the film, which
holds that knights were so consumed with love for a woman, they would do
anything for her. William’s entire journey to freedom is interpreted even by
those around him as a response to his love for Murron and his desire to make
her happy and proud, even in her death. In the execution scene, before his
death, William sees Murron in the crowd, smiling, comforting him. This seems to
signify that William had finally succeeded in his courtly love duties, and
could finally go meet her in the afterlife.
William with Murron in the village before her death. William's love for her remained central to his cause throughout the entire film.
Another
central theme to the film was the idea of freedom and William’s rejection of
politics. William is often confronted with both English and Scottish royals and
nobles, yet he rejects their roles and instead believes each Scot should be
free. In an exchange between Robert the Bruce, the rightful king of Scotland,
and William, William discards politics and reveals his true thoughts about both
men’s roles. He says, “There's a difference between us. You think the people of
this country exist to provide you with position. I think your position exists
to provide those people with freedom. And I go to make sure that they have it,”
(Braveheart). Much of William’s desire for freedom appears to come from the childhood
influence of his father who tells him before going to battle: “Your heart is
free. Have the courage to follow it,” (Braveheart). The torture and execution
scene, perhaps the most important scene in the movie, reveals William’s ultimate
chivalry and bravery, as he is willing to die for Scottish freedom.
Robert the Bruce discussing Scottish freedom and politics with William. It is in this scene that William tells Robert he desires total Scottish freedom, and fights hard for it.
Overall the
movie Braveheart, while not known for
its historical accuracy, was an entertaining film that presented several
medieval themes and ideas. The film’s use of armor and fighting was pleasingly
accurate, as well as the notions of chivalry, bravery, and courtly love. While
the film did buy in to popular culture’s ideas of medieval life and peasantry,
it nonetheless presented an idea that is still important in today’s culture:
the desires of Scottish independence from Britain. Even in the wake of the 2014
election, while Scotland voted to remain a part of the United Kingdom, there
still remain supporters of William Wallace’s cause and love for independence
and freedom. For this reason, Braveheart will
remain a must-see for many people for many years to come.
