Epic Drama Alexander Revisits Intriguing Historical Figure

 

By Alan Silverman

Irish-born Colin Farrell stars as one of the great figures of ancient history in an epic¹ drama written and directed by Oscar winning filmmaker Oliver Stone. Alan Silverman has a look at Alexander.

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Twenty-five centuries ago, the Macedonian warrior-king Alexander led his army to conquer lands and peoples stretching from the Mediterranean² across the Middle East to South Asia: what European historians later called "the known world."

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The bold battlefield commander and visionary monarch³ was only 32 when he died amid intrigues⁴ that would splinter his empire. Colin Farrell says his research into the history and the intricately detailed⁵ script by Oliver Stone helped him create, not a superhero, but a very human character who understood fear.

"Alexander was a mortal man, whether he at times perceived himself [or was told] that he was the son of Zeus and godlike in his existence, at the end of the day, you cut him and he bled," (Farrell says) "You betrayed him and you broke his heart. These were things that he feared. He didn't fear his own mortality and he certainly didn't fear death. If anything, he raced toward it with a head of steam; but he did fear betrayal. He feared that he would never find love. He feared lack of trust in his life. He feared being alone. He feared not having a son and heir to the throne. He feared failure . . . and all these things drove him on with the passion and the gusto that he had to achieve what he did in life."

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Angelina Jolie co-stars as Olympias, the manipulative mother of Alexander.
"I think she is not different than I would be if I lived at that time. She was at a time when women had no rights, when being a mother meant you were the vessel⁶ to carry a child and that's all you were. If Alexander did not become king, they would have been exiled or killed. So I think she was a survivor⁷ in a very dark and brutal⁸ time. Her way of being actually makes sense to me. It's not so crazy. A modern person could tell her son 'just do what you want to do and what love.' She had to say 'you can't. You have a destiny and you must be strong.' "

The cast also features Val Kilmer as Philip of Macedon - the father of Alexander - Rosario Dawson plays his fiery⁹ Persian bride Roxana; and Jared Leto is his lifelong friend Hephaistion. Some protests have been lodged¹⁰ against the film for its clear implication that the two were also lovers; and, while historians note that bisexuality was not uncommon¹¹ in the ancient, pre-Christian world, Colin Farrell agrees with the choice not to show their physical relationship.

"What you do is you make a choice and decide what is important to see. I agree that Hephaistion and Alexander should not have been shown in a sexual situation because the relationship was not anything to do with sexuality. The relationship was built on pure and absolute love and friendship from a very young age to their final breaths. People make such a thing about sex that they'll just judge it as that; and we wanted the relationship to be something more beautiful than that - something pure. Although it was hinted at with lines like 'stay with me tonight Hephaistion' and 'you're the one I love, the only one I've ever wanted,' we didn't want to hit the nail on the head or have people squirming in their seats. We wanted them to be able to appreciate the love between the two men. "

Writer/director Oliver Stone says the film does not try to draw parallels to the modern political world; he says the historical facts do that all by themselves.
"Alexander is an old, old story. It's 2500 years old. There is a reason people remember him: primarily because he was not only seen as a military conqureror-genius, but as a man of compassion¹² who could weep for his dead soldiers on the battlefield - the first king known to do so. He was a man who had generosity¹³ of vision, who was inclusive in his policies, culturally and religiously. He brought the Greek way to the East and, at the same time, he incorporated the Eastern way of life into the Greek way. There was a beauty to his concept. You could say that he was the last Greek and after him came the Romans. The Romans used his idea of Empire. The Greeks are the prototypes of the Americans and democracy; and the English culture takes a lot from the Greeks."

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Alexander was shot in locations from Morocco to Thailand. English historian and noted¹⁴ Alexander expert Robin¹⁵ Lane Fox served as technical advisor¹⁶; and the musical score is by Oscar-winning Greek-born composer Vangelis.

Alan Silverman for the Voice Of America in Hollywood.

注释：
Alexander 电影《亚历山大大帝》
Macedonian 马其顿的
Mediterranean 地中海
visionary 梦想的
monarch 君主
splinter 分裂
intricately 杂乱的
mortality 死亡，必死性
betrayal 出卖
manipulative 操控的
bisexuality 双性恋
squirm 蠕动
prototype 原型

 

1 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

2 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

3 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

4 intrigues   

n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 )；神秘气氛；引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 )；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• He was made king as a result of various intrigues. 由于搞了各种各样的阴谋，他当上了国王。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Those who go in for intrigues and conspiracy are doomed to failure. 搞阴谋诡计的人注定要失败。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

6 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

7 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。

8 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

9 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

10 lodged   

v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属

参考例句：

• The certificate will have to be lodged at the registry. 证书必须存放在登记处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Our neighbours lodged a complaint against us with the police. 我们的邻居向警方控告我们。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

12 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

13 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

14 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

15 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

16 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。