| Eugene Borza-Expert says 'Alexander' get WRONG! | |
| f9 | "Alexander" may be a lousy movie, but that's not entirely the fault of director Oliver Stone. Eugene Borza, a historian regarded as one of the world's leading experts on ancient Macedonia, derailed Stone's new film with relish Thursday when he spoke in a crowded Stahr Auditorium at Franklin & Marshall College. The movie opened Nov. 24 and finished a disappointing sixth at the box office over Thanksgiving weekend. Borza, a retired Penn State professor, prefaced his criticism by describing the many ways Alexander has been mythologized since the day he died in 323 B.C. But to make a good film, a director needs to understand his subject. That's not easy when your subject is a legend. Borza said Stone doesn't understand Alexander, but then, neither do historians. "Movie critics have complained that the movie lacks coherent vision. The fault may not be Stone's," Borza said. "We know what (Alexander) did, and it continues to astonish us, but we don't know how or why he did it." Alexander, son of Philip II of Macedonia, was respected as a military commander by age 18, crowned king of the Greek city states at age 20 and conquered much of the world, from Athens to India, before he died of an infectious disease at age 32. "That's a stunning career," Borza said. Some historians, and Stone, argue that Alexander's goal was spreading the gospel of Greek culture, the so-called Hellenization of the ancient world. That was never Alexander's policy, Borza said. The general was a talented commander out to test himself and his men for no good reason. "Stone suggests some noble purpose for Alexander's mad, bloody tromp across Asia," Borza said, "He and his historical consultant shared a need to give meaning to a meaningless conquest." Borza has devoted much of his life to researching Alexander and his adventures. He's the author of four books and countless papers on Macedonian history. Alexis Castor, a professor in F&M's classics department, invited Borza to campus because she respects his work, although not all historians do. "Macedonia itself was for years considered the academic equivalent of a frontier saloon," Castor said. Borza argues that ancient Macedonia - present-day northern Greece and the Republic of Macedonia - should be studied as a nation distinct from ancient Greece. The Greeks never liked Alexander in his day. It was only after he became a respectable legend that they laid claim to him as their own, heterosexual, hero. "Alexander" is set to open today in Greece, despite complaints from clerics and lawyers that Stone portrays the general as bisexual. Attorneys threatening to sue Warner Bros. Studios were treated to a private screening Thursday. The kiss between Alexander, played by Colin Farrell, and his childhood friend, Hephaistion, played by Jared Leto, can be interpreted many ways, Giannis Varnakas, one of the lawyers, told the Associated Press after the screening. "We have avoided the worst," he said. "Fortunately it was not what we had feared. The people can go and see the movie." Borza asserted that Alexander was bisexual. In addition to his liaison with Hephaiston, the historian suspects the general had a close relationship with a eunuch. He also had three wives. The historian reminded his audience that Alexander lived in the 4th century B.C., and was by no means bound to the mores of Orthodox Christianity. However, he said Stone's use of sexuality in the film is explotive and unnecessary. Among the films merits, Borza noted that the drinking implements and jewelry are modeled after artifacts discovered 25 years ago in Macedonian tombs. He also approved of several battle scenes. "The bad news is that errors abound, and it is not historical nit-picking to suggest these could have been avoided," Borza said. The film uses "Greek" and "Macedonian" interchangeably and refers to Alexander as "the Great" even though the moniker wasn't added for several centuries. Borza said he could go on, but he needed time to criticize the film's artistic merits, or lack thereof. He called Farrell's acting "amateurish" and the script "incoherent." The only person the professor thought might like the film, because he liked publicity, is Alexander himself. "I cannot help but think that, wherever he is, he is looking down on us enjoying this whole spectacle," Borza said. |
| f9 | Archaeological Institute of America has realised movie commentary on the film from an archaeological and historical perspective from Professor Dr. Eugene Borza Emeritus of Ancient History, The Pennsylvania State University -Integralniot tekst mozhete da go prochitate ovde:http://www.archaeological.org/pdfs/papers/AIA_Alexander_Review.pdf ili da go prevzemete od ovoj link:http://www.archaeological.org/webinfo.php?page=10266 Citati: " And one of Aristotle’s nice pebble maps shows “Greece” as spread across the southern Balkans incorporating what today would include not only Greece, but also Albania, Bulgaria, and sections of former Yugoslavia. These regions had never been considered as part of “Greece” in antiquity. Which leads to an associated problem: the script is inconsistent in describing the ethnicity and cultural aspirations of the army of conquest. The personnel and their goals are sometimes referred to as “Greek” solely, sometimes as “Macedonian” solely, and often by both terms. This must be terribly confusing to an audience not experienced in the nuances of Greek-Macedonian relationships in antiquity. The ancient sources make clear distinctions between Greeks and Macedonians in Alexander’s train. The problem is compounded by several references to the goal of establishing a unity and reconciliation between Greeks and barbarians. This is, simply put, wrong, and in contrast to Alexander’s own prayer at Opis in 324 BC that there be established a coalition between the two ruling classes of Europe and Asia: Macedonians and Persians. Greeks are not mentioned. Was there no coordination among the three script writers on these issues?....The problem for Stone & Co. was that, lacking any purpose beyond conquest for its own sake, they would have been saddled with an Alexander who was little more than a brilliant commander travelling an endless path of conquest. And so the film’s creators adopted a corollary to Tarn’s Noble Purpose, that Alexander’s mission was to spread Greek culture into the nether regions of the world. A sober review of the evidence from antiquity, however, suggests something quite different: there is no doubt that Alexander, who had been a pupil of Aristotle and who continued to be devoted to Homer and Euripides, was enamored of Greek culture. This is part of his personal baggage, but it is not a component of his policy. That is, there is a difference between what Alexander himself held dear, and what he intended for the rest of the world. This is not to deny that, as a result of Alexander’s Asian conquests, Hellenism spread, in greater or lesser degree, into Egypt and western Asia. But this is a by-product of Alexander’s passage, as his overthrow of Persian rule removed the long-time bloc against the spread of Greek culture into the East. One wonders why Stone and Lane Fox were unable to recognize what Alexander’s own army saw so clearly: there was no point to it all. And so the army mutinied on the Indian frontier, refusing to go further. ....For example, as Alexander was preparing to leave the Punjab following the mutiny of his troops, the scene depicts several larger-than-life-size human statues in the Macedonian camp. They look odd, and there is no explanation for their appearance. Yet, there is a charming story in our ancient sources that relates how Alexander ordered the construction of large human figures on the banks of the river frontier that marked the end of their journey, so that any future passersby would think that the Macedonians were a race of giants. " |
| Inkognito | Ñè çåäîâ ñëîáîäà äà ãî ïðåâåäàì êîìåíòàðîò íà Áîðçà çà ôèëìîò, ïà åâå ãî ... Ñå èçâèíóâàì çà ôîíòîò .. Juxin Borza – istori~ar – eden od svetskite vode~ki eksperti za anti~ka Makedonija Juxin N. Borza, po~esen professor vo penzija, po anti~ka istorija na dr`avniot univerzitet vo Pensilvanija Komentar za filmot: “ALEKSANDAR” na re`iserot Oliver Stoun Objaveno vo http://www.archaeological.org – dekemvri 2004 Malku filmovi vo dene{no vreme predizvikale takva senzacija pred prika`uvaweto kako {to e Aleksandar na Oliver Stoun. Ova se o~ekuva{e bidej}i eden od najtalentiranite i najkontraverznite filmski re`iseri go svrte vnimanieto kon karierata na eden anti~ki kral koj e najslavna zemna figura vo istorijata. No {to ovoj re`iser, ~ii predhodni filmovi se polni so zaveri i kontraverzii bi napravil so enigmata na likot i celite na Aleksandar? “Aleksandar Makedonski” bil tema na predhoden ednostaven filmski proekt vo produkcija na Robert Rosen, “Aleksandar Veliki”, koj izleze pred polovina vek. Tehni~ki ovoj film ne e dobar. Procesot na snimaweto e primitiven, scenite se eftini i istoriski neto~ni, hronologijata e polna so gre{ki. Ovoj film ne e nitu blizu do tehni~kiot kvalitet na nekoi drugi epski filmovi. No vovedniot del od filmot koj iako eftino snimen, e seriozna studija za Makedonskata kralska intriga, prika`ana vo mo}nite ulogi na Frederik Mar~ kako Filip i Ri~ard Barton kako glaven lik. Ovoj del od scenarioto e baziran na Plutarhoviot “@ivotot na Aleksandar”. To~no go prika`uva kralskiot `ivot vo periodot koga princot Aleksandar go pominuva detstvoto i vleguva vo ranata mladost. Vrvnoto dostignuvawe na ovoj film e portretiraweto na edna od najkompleksnite ~ove~ki storii koi gi znaeme od antikata, odnosot koj postoel pome|u voeniot komandant Filip i negoviot ambiciozen sin. Kralot Filip II Makedonski vnimaval na Aleksandar i negovata privrzanost so negovata majka Olimpija, koja ve}e bila zameneta so pomlada `ena. Aleksandar poka`uval voen talent i bil harizmati~en voda~. Ova bile osobini koi ne samo {to go zapla{uvale Filip tuku i mu godele bidej}i imal kompetenten i uspe{en voin. Malku kralevi vo istorijata bile tolku sre}ni so sinovite. Ona {to go znaeme za me|usebnite ~uvstva {to gi imale Filip i Aleksandar e prika`ano dosta dobro od akterite Frederik Mar~ i Ri~ard Barton. So ogled na talentite na re`iserot i negovite glavni akteri, se pra{uvame {to bi se proizvelo so pogolem filmski buxet i pogolema tehnologija. Sega imame drug talentiran re`iser so mnogu pogolem buxet i kompetentni istoriski i tehni~ki materijali. Rezultatot e – nekoherentnost (nelogi~nost). Produciraweto na eden vakov istoriski ep bara od re`iserot vnimatelnost vo ona {to treba da se odbere i vklu~i vo filmot. Ovie izbori zavisat od brojni faktori, vklu~uvaj}i gi buxetot, produkcijata, akterite i samata vizija na re`iserot : filmot mora da ima struktura koja }e ja reflektira vizijata i namerata na re`iserot. Za moment da ja prifatime vizijata na Stoun i da ja razgledame to~nosta na istoriskite nastani. Kolku e istoriski to~en “Aleksandar” na Stoun? Ima razlika pome|u istoriskite neto~nosti bazirani na nezainteresiranosta i neprofesionalnoto istra`uvawe i ona {to e rezultat na svesnata odluka na re`iserot da go promeni minatoto so cel da ja poddr`i negovata artisti~ka vizija. Na krajot od filmot e napi{ano deka filmot e “inspiriran od nekoi istoriski nastani” i deka nekoi od ovie nastani malku se promeneti. (neodamne{niot film, Troja, tekstot deka filmot e “inspiriran” od Homer barem e staven na po~etokot). Aleksandar ne e istoriski ili arheolo{ki dokumentiran film. Stoun odlu~il da gi ispu{ti pome|u drugite i epizodite za Aleksandar vo Egipet, bitkite na rekata Granik i Is, uni{tuvaweto na Teba i palatata vo Persepali, zasedata na Tir, se~eweto na Gordieviot jazol. Bi mo`ele da se raspravame za izborot na Stoun ([to? Da se isklu~i epizodata so Gordieviot jazol? Najpoznatata epizoda za Aleksandar?) no ovie izbori se na re`iserot. Na krajot od krai{tata i ne e tolku va`no da se vklu~i s# (ako i voop{to e toa mo`no) kolku {to e va`no toa {to e vklu~eno da e istoriski to~no i vo granicite na razumot i finansiite. Prvo da gi razgledame dobrite vesti. Stoun i negoviot istoriski sovetnik Robin Lejn Foks bea pomognati od kolegite na Lejn Foks od Oksford univerzitetot i drugi britanski eksperti. Scenite na Vavilon se spektakularni, i nadvore{nosta i vnatre{nosta na palatata, {to zna~i deka dizajnerite ja zavr{ile dobro svojata rabota. Pomalku se znae za gradbata na kralskata palata na Makedonskiot centar vo Pela, no dizajnerite so pomo{ na pre`iveanite arhitektonski fragmenti napravile ednostavna Dorska gradba koja odgovara na relevantnata ednostavnost na Makedonskiot kralski `ivot. So ova e napraven kontrast so rasko{niot stil na Istokot. Sadovite za piewe, zlatnite kralski venci, `enskiot nakit to~no gi reflektiraat aktuelnite predmeti otkrieni vo ponovite iskopuvawa, iako e malku ~udno da se vidi to~no reproduciran mermeren mozaik od Pela da gi krasi yidovite na palatata na Ptolomej vo Aleksandrija. Drugo ne{to {to e isto ~udno e toa {to mejkap stilistite na Stoun ja modelirale luznata na desnoto oko na Filip II spored rekonstrukcijata na glavata na Filip publicirana vo “@urnalot na Helinisti~kite Studii” vo 1984-god. od strana na eden Britanski tim. (Filip go izgubil okoto od gr~ka strela za vreme na opsadata na Metonija vo 354-god. p.n.e.) Britanskata rekonstrukcija na Filip e fantazija. Neodamne{nite nau~ni ispituvawa na ~erepot i skeletot poka`ale deka ostatocite ne se na Filip. No zo{to voop{to i da se zamarame so nekakva moderna rekonstrukcija na luznata koga od istiot grob e izvaden portret na Filip koj poka`uva poto~na sli~nost so luznata na kralot, i ja poka`uva luznata vo poinakva polo`ba? Makedonskata voena oprema e vo golema merka to~no prika`ana, edinstveniot isklu~ok e {lemot so glavata na lav koj go nosi Aleksandar. Spored Plutarh, Aleksandar nosel ednostaven, oloven {lem dizajniran za nego od gr~kiot zanaet~ija Teofil. Prikazot na isklu~itelno kompleksnata bitka kaj Gavgamela e impresiven ne samo poradi prerabotkata na nekolkute glavni nastani na konfliktot tuku i naglasuvaj}i kolku bilo te{ko za golemi armii da vojuvaat vo pustina. Isto taka e napraven i impresiven prikaz na Makedonskata pe{adiska falanga dr`ej}i gi nivnite dolgi kopja, portretirana od grupa so 1500 Marokanski vojnici strogo trenirani od voeniot sovetnik na Stoun. Druga scena na bitka e monumentalnata bitka na Aleksandar protiv lu|eto i slonovite predvodeni od Indiecot Raxa Por. Ovaa scena e prika`ana vo proodna {uma vo xunglata namesto da bide smestena dol` bregovite na rekata Hidaspa (Xelum). Istoriski neto~noto scenario na ovaa bitka koe rezultira od svesnata odluka na Stoun da ja upotrebi scenata so xunglata kako kontrast na Gavgamela e vsu{nost umetni~ka odluka a ne gre{ka. Sepak gre{ki ima mnogu koi so malku pogolemo vnimanie mo`ele da bidat izbegnati. Na primer, portretiraweto na Ptolomej e prika`ano so fokusirawe na vnimanieto kon pristani{teto na Aleksandrija na ~ij vlez dominira edno od “Sedumte ~uda na anti~kiot svet” – Farot. No ovoj golem svetilnik ne postoel za vreme na vladeeweto na Ptolomej – konstruiran e od negoviot naslednik Filadelf. Baktriskata `ena na Aleksandar Roksana te{ko deka e prika`ana kako strasna i itra `ena vo filmot na Stoun. Istoriski taa bila posvetena sopruga i majka koja igrala tradicionalna uloga na ra|awe deca za kralot, od koi edno mo`ebi umrelo vo Indija kako dete a drugoto bilo rodeno posle smrtta na Aleksandar 323-god. p.n.e. Stoun im pravi protiv usluga i na istoriskata i na vistinskata Roksana so nejzinoto portretirawe kako seksualno pasivna s# so cel da se izvle~e heteroseksualnoto odnesuvawe na Aleksandar. Oliver Stoun saka da ja naglasi ambivalentnata seksualnost na kralot – glavnata tema na filmot. Antigon (ednookiot), prijatelot na Aleksandar, ne go pridru`uva Aleksandar vo Indija kako {to sugerira filmot; i namesto toa ostanuva vo Frigija kako guverner se do smrtta na Aleksandar. Mestata Gavgamela i Vavilon se smesteni vo Persija namesto (kako {to e to~no) vo Asirija i Vavilonija. Edna od mermernite karti na Aristotel ja prika`uva “Grcija” rasprostraneta niz ju`niot Balkan vklu~uvaj}i ja ne samo dene{na Grcija tuku i Albanija, Bugarija i delovi od porane{na Jugoslavija. Ovie delovi nikoga{ ne bile delovi od “grcija” vo antikata. Seto ova vodi kon eden zaedni~ki problem: Scenarioto e nelogi~no vo opi{uvaweto na etni~kite i kulturnite aspiracii na edna armija {to osvojuva. Celite na ovaa armija ponekoga{ se prika`uvaat kako samo Gr~ki a ponekoga{ kako samo Makedonski a ~esto i so dvata termini. Ova mora da e u`asno zbunuva~ki za publikata koja nema poznavawa za suptilnite gr~ko-makedonski odnosi vo antikata. Anti~kite izvori pravat jasna razlika pome|u grcite i Makedoncite vo vojskata na Aleksandar. Problemot e zgolemen koga se naglasuva idejata da se napravi edna zaednica i koga se zdru`uvaat grcite i varvarite. Ova e celosno pogre{no i e sprotivno na li~nata molitva na Aleksandar kaj Opis vo 324-god p.n.e. koga toj veli deka treba da se napravi koalicija pome|u dvete vladea~ki klasi vo Evropa i Azija. Makedoncite i Persijcite. Grcite ne se spomnati. Zarem nemalo koordinacija pome|u trojcata scenaristi na ovie temi? Filmskite likovi na majkata Olimpija i generalot i naslednik na Aleksandar Ptolomej, go narekuvaat herojot “Aleksandar Veliki”, a vsu{nost “Veliki” e dodadeno na imeto na Aleksandar mnogu podocna vo Rimskiot period. Ima mnogu drugi neto~nosti, nekoi se prostlivi zaradi vizijata na Stoun a nekoi ne, bidej}i se rezultat na neprofesionalno istra`uvawe. Stoun, negovite scenaristi i sovetnikot Robin Lejn Foks se obidele da mu dodadat na Aleksandar blagorodna cel i da im dadat zna~ewe i smisla na osvojuvawata na Aleksandar duri i tamu kade {to toa ne postoelo. Problemot na Stoun i sorabotnicite e {to, vo nedostig na bilo kakva cel koja bi stoela pozadi osvojuvawata tie go optovarile so drugi odgovornosti likot na Aleksandar koj bil malku pove}e od brilijanten voda~ koj odel po beskraen pat na negovoto osvojuvawe. Taka filmskite mejkeri ja adaptirale blagorodnata cel na ova osvojuvawe prika`uvaj}i ja misijata na Aleksandar kako {irewe na gr~kata kultura vo svetot. Realniot pregled na dokazite od antikata, sugerira ne{to sosema razli~no: nema somnevawe deka Aleksandar, koj bil u~enik na Aristotel i koj mu bil posveten na Homer i Evripid, bil voodoo{even od gr~kata kultura. Ova e del od negovata li~na edukacija a ne negovoto nasledstvo. Ne mo`e da se negira toa {to Aleksandar so svoite osvojuvawa vo Azija, vo pogolem ili pomal stepen go pro{iril helenizmot vo Egipet i zapadna Azija. No ova e sporedna cel na patuvaweto na Aleksandar pri {to so ukinuvaweto na Persiskoto vladeewe bile trgnati dolgogodi{nite vladeteli koi bile protiv {ireweto na gr~kata kultura na istok. Za ~udewe e zo{to Stoun i Lejn Foks ne mo`ele da go prepoznaat ona {to armijata na Aleksandar go videla mnogu jasno: Nemalo nikakva cel vo seto toa. I taka armijata se pobunila na indiskata granica, odbivaj}i da odi ponatamu. Filmskite kritiki nasekade objavuvaat deka na filmot na Oliver Stoun mu nedostasuva logi~na vizija. Aleksandar bil mitska figura, ne pomalku enigmati~en od Herkul ili Ahil so koi toj se identifikuval. Ova ne postoi vo filmot. Ako gi ostavime nastrana istoriskite fakti, filmot sam po sebe e nered. Mo`ebi Stoun i negovite sovetnici znaele premnogu, obiduvaj}i se da vklu~at pove}e raboti odkolku {to bile vo mo`nost zaboravaj}i go kontinuitetot na rabotite. Scenarioto e vo golema merka nelogi~no, postojano tragaj}i po nekoe re{enie vo likot na Aleksandar. Scenite so govorite bi trebalo da se sramewe za akterite koi trebalo da bidat pokompetentni i poseriozni vo odnos na svoite ulogi. Nekolku od likovite mo`e da se stavat nastrana – me|u koi se Olimpija, Parmenion i Aristotel – pove}eto od akterite se ili neubedlivi ili premnogu melodramati~ni. I kolku pomalku }e se iskomentira za Kolin Farel tolku podobro. Te{ko e da se otkrie vo ova amatersko glumewe harizmata koja mu ovozmo`ila na Aleksandar da ja povede armijata do Indija i nazad. Kako i da e mislam deka ulogata na Ahil na Bred Pit vo neodamne{niot epski film Troja be{e posodr`inska i poverodostojna. Potoa tuka e i temata za seksualniot `ivot na Aleksandar koja predizvika navreda pome|u nekoi gr~ki ortodoksni sve{tenici i grupa na gr~ki advokati koi ne go ni gledale filmot, tuku pobrzale da go branat ugledot na neohelenskiot nacionalen heroj. Stoun izgleda bil opsednat so seksualnosta na Aleksandar i toa mnogu pove}e od samiot Aleksandar, i mnogu pove}e od nekoi drugi moderni kritiki. Nie gi koristime terminate “homoseksualec” i “biseksualec” so sovremeno zna~ewe i optovareni so sovremeni socijalni vrednosti. Ovie termini ne postojat kaj anti~kite grci i Makedonci: vo tie denovi ili postoela ili ne postoela seksualnosta. Ma`ot bil relativno sloboden vo seksualnata aktivnost so ma{kiot i `enskiot pol. Vo antikata ne postoele hristijanskite kodovi na pravilno seksualno odnesuvawe. Kodovite na odnesuvawe bile pove}e povrzani so socijalniot status, vozrasta. [to zna~i opsesijata na Stoun so seksualnosta na Aleksandar e nepotrebna. I na kraj, Aleksandar od Makedonija treba doprva da go sretne svojot re`iser. Juxin N. Borza, po~esen professor vo penzija, po anti~ka istorija na dr`avniot univerzitet vo Pensilvanija |
| DJ_SHEMA | Makedonija, rasa na dzinovi Macedonia, a race of giants... I like it |
| -falanga | Vreme e nie Makedoncite da snimime realen film so vistinskiot jazik, so nasite gajdi, tapani, kavali imame luge so vistinskata boja na kozata i gradbata na Makedonecot. Jas smetam licno deka moze da se raspisa i konk*rs a lugeto i od zadovolstvo ke go napravat toa i so minimalni pari ke posluzat na filmskata ekipa nema potreba od holyvoodski zvezdi dovoln e nekolku |