Review of Alexander (2004) by Caspar R — 03 Jun 2010

I will not speak to Alexander's historical accuracy except to say that the movie states clearly and immediately that historians have not known much for certain about this great man ever since the destruction of crucial library records. Even the narrator, played lazily by Anthony Hopkins, doesn't claim to be telling any Truth besides that which derives from his own perspective on things.

With historical accuracy aside then, I admit I enjoyed Alexander. Although it's very difficult to get into at the start and has a plot that drags and flip-flops through time like an attention deficit child, it really is a bright, lustrous ride.

Val Kilmer is grotesque and intense as Alexander's father and Colin Farrell pulls out a complex, interesting and severely underrated performance in the lead. The battle scenes are incomprehensible at times, and beautifully adventurous at others. I loved the sexual complexity of this film and the subtle sincerity with which it was played.

Alexander turned out to be something of a guilty pleasure for me, in that it was truly campy and awkward at times but still a soaring bit of fun to be reckoned with.