Braveheart (1995)

Braveheart (1995)

In Mel Gibson's own Best Picture-winning warrior epic about a legendary 13th century historical Scottish figure - a political rebel; he memorably portrayed the heroic freedom fighter William Wallace in this rousing, three hour film, who victoriously fought against the army of the oppressive and tyrannical King Edward I "Longshanks" (Patrick McGoohan) at Stirling Bridge in 1297:

• future Scottish freedom-fighter William Wallace (Mel Gibson) proceeded to secretly courts, marry, and consummate his love love (in the moonlight) with his childhood sweetheart, Murron MacClannough (Catherine McCormack)
• the legendary face-painted Scottish hero fought against the English in the awesome battle of Stirling Bridge after he rallied his men by riding in front of them on horseback: ("Sons of Scotland! I am William Wallace....Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds. And if he were here, he'd consume the English with fireballs from his eyes, and bolts of lightning from his arse. (Laughter) I am William Wallace! And I see a whole army of my country men, here, in defiance of tyranny. You've come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight? ...Aye, fight and you may die, run and you'll live, at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom! Alba gu bra! (Scotland forever!)")
• charging British horsemen approached the Scottish hordes, as Wallace held off his fighters for as long as possible by crying out "Hold!" until the moment when he yelled: "Now" - the men crouched down, grabbed pointed wooden spikes and raised them, and impaled the riders and their horses; brutal hand-to-hand combat followed, with bloody and lethal swordplay
• after the heroic Wallace was defeated at the Battle of Falkirk, he was found guilty of high treason and courageously withstood brutal torture ("I'm not dead yet") and then died for his cause at the Tower of London; first, he was stretched (partially hung with a rope by his neck), racked (or stretched in mid-air by ropes tied to his hands and feet), and then disemboweled ( "drawn and quartered") in a public display; showing continual resistance, he defiantly cried out his last word, not "Mercy" as he was commanded to beg, but: "FREEEEE-DOMMMMMM!"
• the executioner was given the nod to kill him; he turned his head to the side - and had a vision of his already-murdered wife Murron (Catherine McCormack) - seen walking in the crowd as a ghost and smiling at him [Note: she had been publicly executed - her throat was slit - for assaulting an English soldier intent on rape one day after their marriage]; after he was beheaded with one swinging stroke of a sharp axe (off-screen), his death reunited him with her; the bloody rag he held clenched in his fist dropped to the ground

• the last lines of the film were William Wallace's voice-over - about the victorious Scots under the leadership of Robert the Bruce (Angus Macfadyen): ("In the Year of our Lord 1314, patriots of Scotland - starving and outnumbered - charged the fields of Bannockburn. They fought like warrior poets; they fought like Scotsmen, and won their freedom")