Review of Alexander The Great

Introduction

From the vaults of MGM’s extensive back catalogue comes the 1956 version of Alexander the Great, just in time to boost sales when the hype over 2004’s two new Alexander movies starts rolling. Directed by Robert Rossen of ‘The Hustler’ fame, and starring the great Richard Burton, the film tells us about the enormously ambitious Alexander, king of Macedonia, who conquered the whole wold before his death at 33.

Video

Although the DVD has the advantage over VHS and TV of being in anamorphic 1.85:1, I cannot say it is a substantial improvemement over either of those versions – or not at least to justify a purchase of the film. The picture lacks detail and appears soft – although made almost 50yrs ago, remastering would have gone some way to improving this. The print is grainy and frequent specks and spots appear, and there is also a fair amount of artifacts present. MGM have come across as a little lazy for releasing this as a straight port to disc.

Audio

The mono soundtrack reproduces the dialogue clearly and without hiss. Italian, Spanish and French dubs are also included, and a wide choice of subtitles.

Features

Just the theatrical trailer, which is also in widescreen and of similar picture quality to the main feature.

Conclusion

Although Burton is a very fine actor and Rossen has shown with direction of ‘The Hustler’ that he can craft a masterpiece, Alexander the Great is as lumbering and ponderous as the elephants Alexander had to fight against. The 1950’s sword-and-sandal epics have never been known for their witty dialogue, but here the speeches are so terribly stilted that even Burton’s sonorous voice cannot correct them. The acting of the supporting cast is below par and the ending weak. It’s hard to recommend this as a purchase when the terrestrial channels show so many similar epics - or instead wait until the Oliver Stone and Baz Lurhmann revisions come out in 2004.