In his autobiography, Adam West stated, "May well be the worst hour of TV in history" regarding this pilot for a proposed TV series that he co-stared in. Is it THAT bad? Of course not - I've seen worse pilots and worse TV series. That's not to say that this is a GOOD pilot, however. I will say that it doesn't look bad - some time and expense was put into making or getting a hold of period costumes and props, though it does look some battle footage was taken from a theatrical movie. And there is some amusement from Shatner's sometimes hammy performance as the title figure, and that this great leader is sometimes portrayed as a kind of adolescent goofball. But that is all that is entertaining about this pilot. It's a real dull affair for the most part, with a lot of stiff and dry dialogue. The pilot also fails to provide enough explanation for viewers who know little to nothing about Alexander the Great and his military campaign, so as a result there are some confusing parts. If you do want to watch this pilot despite what I've said, it can be found on the Mill Creek DVD company's 50 movie pack "The Sensational Sixties", which managed to uncover a decent-looking print for this now public domain production.
Review of Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great
(1963 TV Movie)
Sometimes network executives make the right decisions!
28 October 2014