Scottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.Scottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.Scottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.
- Won 5 Oscars
- 34 wins & 34 nominations total
- Robert the Bruce
- (as Angus McFadyen)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
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Best Picture Winners by Year
Best Picture Winners by Year
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaMel Gibson initially turned down the role of William Wallace, feeling that he was too old for the part (Gibson was 38 at the time, while the real Wallace died at 35) , but Paramount Pictures would finance the film only if Gibson starred in it, so he agreed.
- GoofsThe fruit thrown at Wallace as he is being led to his execution includes tomatoes. The tomato was introduced to Europe from the Americas in the early 16th century, over 200 years after Wallace's death.
- Quotes
William Wallace: And if this is your army, why does it go?
Veteran: We didn't come here to fight for them!
Young Soldier: Home! The English are too many!
William Wallace: Sons of Scotland! I am William Wallace.
Young Soldier: William Wallace is seven feet tall!
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.
[Scottish army laughs]
William Wallace: I am William Wallace! And I see a whole army of my countrymen, 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?
Veteran: Fight? Against that? No! We will run. And we will live.
William Wallace: 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 willin' 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!
William Wallace: [yelling, in Latin] Scotland forever
- Crazy creditsWith the exception of the title of the movie, there are no opening credits.
- Alternate versionsWhen the film was originally released, the final voice over tells us that the Scots "won their freedom... forever." The "forever" was deleted for the re-release and other future editions. It can still be found, however, in the liner notes of the soundtrack album.
- ConnectionsEdited into 5 Second Movies: Braveheart (2008)
We follow the young Wallace from his early childhood, almost literally blooded early in life to hate the occupying English army under the rule of their despotic King Edward Longshanks played with real brio by Patrick McGoohan. When he loses his father and older brother in another betrayal by Edward, it's clear that the now fully-grown, long-haired Wallace is only awaiting one final provocation before he accepts the freedom-fighter mantle and takes up the cudgels on behalf of his downtrodden people.
For those who don't know very much about Scottish history, it is filled with glorious failures and almost as often double-dealing, back-stabbing intrigue so that it's no surprise when his heroics are brought to an end by a combination of underhand scheming on the part of Edward and the connivance of the corruptible Scottish nobility, in particular the treachery of the future "try, try again" hero - King Robert the Bruce. But Wallace has the last word in more ways than one with his martyr's death and impregnation of the future English queen.
Certainly one of Hollywood's more outrageous retellings of a story from history, the movie bludgeons its way into the viewer's consciousness down to the twin combination of Gibson's muscular, gritty direction and his athleticism and conviction in the lead role. Sure, the accents across the cast are occasionally as convincing as a King's promise, but with effective use of crowd scenes and the gory, no holds-barred depictions of battleground warfare, laced with earthy humour and even a good old Highland romance, Gibson delivers a powerfully uplifting if historically inaccurate feature which has thrilled the Scottish national psyche and no doubt the freedom-seeking aspirations of many another country ever since.
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Corazón valiente
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $72,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $75,609,945
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $9,938,276
- May 28, 1995
- Gross worldwide
- $213,216,216
- Runtime2 hours 58 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1