Missing the point entirely

Victor Davis Hanson and Wretchard at Belmont Club write about the historical Alexander the Great and tantalize us with what a great movie could be made about his life. Oliver Stone however, seemed to think that an identity-politics issue of today -- whether Alexander was 'gay' or not -- was the primary thing a three-hour biopic should concentrate on. VDH says:

It is the old Dallas or Falcon Crest glossy pulp in Macedonian drag. Stone’s Alexander is a pouty, wimpy bore; the real figure, whatever your thoughts on him, was a killer and a fearful man of action.

It's a testament to the growing isolation of much of Hollywood that $160 million could be spend on such a project. There's another Alexander project in the Hollywood pipeline, but I don't hold much hope of it being any better. It stars the even-wimpier-than-Colin-Farrell Leonardo DiCaprio and has it's plot summarized as:

Long awaited biopic of the legendary Macedonian king delves not only into his ambitions of world domination but also his homosexual desires.

Sounds like a winner!

Posted by Bruce Gottfred at November 28, 2004 11:12 AM | TrackBack