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Epic: Bold Brave Heroes and their Tales!Sep 09 '06 Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line Epic Tales of Great Adventures What is an Epic? The dictionary offers two definitions 1. Celebrating the feats of a hero 2. Surpassing the usual or the ordinary An Epic film, usually does both. Here are ten stories I truly found to be worthy of the title epic! Most of these stories couldn't even be contained within one movie, but had to span over a trilogy! 10.Spartacus (1960 directed by Stanley Kubrick) I am disappointed that my Stanley Kubrick Box set didn't include his earliest fine works like The Killers, Killers Kiss and this original epic tale of slavery in Rome starring Kirk Douglas When a free man dies, he loses the pleasure of life. A slave loses his pain. Death is the only freedom a slave knows. That's why he's not afraid of it. That's why we'll win 9. Lawrence of Arabia (1962 directed by David Lean) Peter O'Toole starred in this epic sweeping story about a young Lieutenant Lawrence in the British army who gets an assignment in Arabia. The story is a grand one, but even grander is Freddy Young's fantastic cinematography. The DVD capture made this movie look every bit as stunning as anything released today. Although not spread into a trilogy, this epic is 216 minutes long, that's well over three hours. Yes, it was my privilege to know him and to make him known to the world. He was a poet, a scholar and a mighty warrior. 8. The Godfather Trilogy (directed by Francis Ford Coppola) I suppose that Michael Corleone is really an anti hero, but for purposes of this film he was the hero, saving his family business and bringing the mafia into the new age. You can't get much more epic than Francis Ford Coppolas rich tale of the Corleone crime family spanning three generations! I don't feel I have to wipe everybody out, Tom. Just my enemies. 7. Mad Max Trilogy (directed by George Miller) Yeah, Mel was great saving Scotland as BraveHeart but the epic that he really hit the map with was this one. Starting with Mad Max (1979) , then the cult classic Road Warrior (1981) and finally Thunderdome (1985), Mel Gibson was truly a hero in post apocalyptic Australia. My life fades. The vision dims. All that remains are memories. I remember a time of chaos. Ruined dreams. This wasted land. But most of all, I remember The Road Warrior. The man we called "Max". To understand who he was, you have to go back to another time. When the world was powered by the black fuel. And the desert sprouted great cities of pipe and steel. Gone now, swept away 6.Gandhi (1982 directed by Richard Attenborough) I remember seeing this when I was a teenager. It was the only movie playing, and I recall thinking, I don't want to see a movie about a man who overcame by peaceful resistance, that sounds boring! I was quite wrong, Ben Kingsley delivered an outstanding performance of Mahatma Gandhi that was very interesting to watch. An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind 5. Kundun (1997 directed by Martin Scorcese) Martin Scorcese's epic saga about the 14th Dalai Lama was not only a visually beautiful, incredible story, but it is also true. It is the real life story of the leader of the Tibetan Budhists and their struggle for sovereignty with China. This real life Buddhist leader is an inspiration to people of any faith. I will liberate those not liberated. I will release those not released. I will relieve those unrelieved. And set living beings in nirvana. 4. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998 directed by Terry Gilliam) Raoul Duke, a barely disguised Hunter S. Thompson (played by Johnny Depp)is the hero of this epic tale of debauchery and living the American Dream in Las Vegas. Duke is a hero for the counter culture, and Gilliam's visionary adaptation of the book most definitely surpasses the usual or the ordinary, and truly makes Fear and Loathing a great American Epic! And that, I think, was the handle - -that sense of inevitable victory over the forces of Old and Evil. Not in any mean or military sense; we didn't need that. Our energy would simply prevail. There was no point in fighting - -on our side or theirs. We had all the momentum; we were riding the crest of a high and beautiful wave. So now, less than five years later, you can go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look West, and with the right kind of eyes you can almost see the high-water mark - -the place where the wave finally broke and rolled back. 3. Gladiator (2000 directed by Ridley Scott) Russell Crowe told me that he would personally come to my home and beat the hell out of me if I didn't include this epic tale about a Roman General turned slave turned Gladiator. I enjoyed the story, felt that the visuals were outstanding, and the acting was good by all. I especially enjoyed Joquin Phoenix as the Emperor's bad son. The opening scene alone between the Roman army and the invading Visigoths is a sight to behold and an ideal scene for showing of home cinemas. If you find yourself alone, riding in the green fields with the sun on your face, do not be troubled. For you are in Elysium, and you're already dead! 2. Harry Potter Yes I said it, Harry Potter. The young wizard who defeated Lord Voldemort as a baby certainly qualifies as a hero, although he probably doesn't even mean to be. Thus far, although some installments are better than others, I think Rowlings epic of a magic society that lives within ours has been done well enough to be thoroughly enjoyed by children and adults. I also believe it has been done well enough to be considered as a great epic. There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it 1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy It doesn't get much more epic than J.R.R.Tolkiens epic tale of middle earth. The 300 million dollar budget, Peter Jacksons direction and a cast and crew of hundreds certainly ensured that this trilogy surpassed the usual or the ordinary. Of course heros abound in this epic from the humble Hobbits who dispose of the Ring, and all who fight the forces of Mordor. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of woes and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down, but it is not this day. This day we fight! (quotes were from IMDB, the Internet Movie DataBase)  |
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