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Features: DVD, Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 2.40:1, Dolby Digital (5.1), Dolby Surround Sound, Audio Commentary, Featurettes, Spanish, French Subtitled, 2 Discs
Oliver Stone recreates the towering, true story of Alexander the Great (Colin Farrell), who in the 4th Century BC conquered Greece, Persia, Afghanistan and India- 90% of the known world. Against massive armies of chariots and elephants, he never lost a battle. Visionary, explorer, dreamer--he was also a tender son, torn by his mother's (Angelina Jolie) burning love and ambition and desperate for his father's (Val Kilmer) approval. His dream shaped the world we live in today.
"...stunning battle sequences!" Ken Fox, TV Guide
"...full of brilliant highlights..." Wesley Morris, Boston Globe
"...Farrell projects an appealing blend of weakness, strength, charisma, idealism and political shrewdness." William Arnold, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Editor's Note
Director Oliver Stone chalks up an ambitious entry on his biopic resume (past entries include films about Jim Morrison, Richard Nixon, and JFK among others) with this cinematic treatise on the life of the mighty Alexander the Great. Despite his young death at 32, Alexander packed some unimaginable conquests into his limited years by ruling over a huge chunk of the globe. Stone draws on a voice-over narration provided by Anthony Hopkins, whose character is named Ptolemy, to aurally depict some of the battles. Thus, Stone shifts the weight of the film to focus on the personality of Alexander (Colin Farrell), a man who is stricken by overwhelming personal insecurities that come in direct contrast to his bold achievements. Complex dealings with his mother (Angelina Jolie) and father (Val Kilmer) plague him, as does his turbulent relationship with his wife, Roxane (Rosario Dawson). His connection with his best friend, Hephaestion (Jared Leto), is ambiguous, with Stone touching on their vaunted homosexuality via some shared tender moments. As these personal battles are played out, Ptolemy fills the historic gaps in the narrative by charting the incredible conflicts that raged at Alexander's behest. Eventually, Stone lets loose with an epic on-screen battle, which sees Alexander's troops rumble across India in another country-conquering quest. But while his minions struggle, and Alexander demands success, it becomes clear that he is his own worst enemy. With the only real threat to Alexander coming from a tempestuous struggle with his own ego, Stone's summation of the great historical leader paints a picture of an embittered and solitary figure who was able to rule everyone apart from himself.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Documentaries: Resurrecting Alexander, Perfect is the Enemy of God, The Death of Alexander | | Featurette: Vangelis Scores Alexander | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: French, Spanish | | Soundtrack Featurette: Vangelis Scores Alexander | | Audio: English, French Dolby Digital (5.1) | | Subtitles: Spanish, French | | Commentary with Oliver Stone and historian Robin Lane Fox | | Resurrecting Alexander - The filming of Alexander | | Perfect is the Enemy of God - an in depth look at the details that go into the filming of an epic. |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Warner |
| Release Date: 5/23/2006 |
| Running Time: 175 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2004 | | Catalog ID: 38936 | | UPC: 00085393893620 | | Number of Discs: 2 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English [CC], English, French Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen 2.40:1 |
| Cast & Crew
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| | Professional Reviews | Uncut
"[With] two huge, astonishing battles..." 09/01/2005 p.149James Berardinelli's ReelViews 4 of 10
To sum up Alexander in three words, I would choose the following: three-hour miscalculation. Although some aspects of Oliver Stone's sword-and-sandals epic are worthy of mention (and even praise), they are dwarfed by the missteps and examples of bad judgment. Instead of delivering a mainstream tale of battle and glory along the lines of Gladiator, Stone decided to re-imagine the great Alexander as a Hamlet-like figure. Rather than developing the title character as a larger-than-life individual whose flaws give him a more rounded personality, Stone turns Alexander into a character who is defined by those flaws. He is weak, indecisive, plagued by self-doubt, and obsessed. It's not credible that a man of this nature could conquer 90% of the known world by the age of 32, and therein lies Alexander's conundrum. By de-mythologizing Alexander, Stone has turned him into an unbelievable individual. We accept great deeds from great people, not from sniveling whiners. - James Berardinelli
San Francisco Chronicle 5 of 10
Alexander, Oliver Stone's three-hour screen biography of Alexander the Great, is epic in scale but not epic in spirit, a wallow in carnage that fails to demonstrate what was so great about this conqueror, after all. It intersperses scenes of slaughter with scenes of Alexander, either exhorting his troops to kill yet more people or sulking because he's misunderstood. It becomes monotonous. - Mick LaSalle
Chicago Sun-Times 5 of 10
When the mighty fall, it is from a greater height. So it was with Alexander the Great, and so it is with Oliver Stone's Alexander. Here is an ambitious and sincere film that fails to find a focus for its elusive subject. Stone is fascinated by two aspects of Alexander: his pan-nationalism and his pan-sexualism. He shows him trying to unite many peoples under one throne while remaining equally inclusive with his choices of lovers. - Roger Ebert
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