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Braveheart is an epic American motion picture released in 1995 based on the life of William Wallace, a national hero in Scotland. Mel Gibson played Wallace and also directed the film.

Braveheart is 270th in the largest amount grossed from a film (worldwide). In terms of actual figures, Braveheart's total lifetime gross is:

The film is credited with provoking a significant upsurge of Scottish nationalism, in particular with leading the majority of the Scottish people, for the first time ever to poll majorities in favour of Scottish independence.

Braveheart is a work of fiction, which draws inspiration from real historical events. However, due to the intense level of detail in costuming, makeup and special effects, audiences may incorrectly assume that the production is intended to be historically accurate. Some of the "inaccuracies" in Braveheart may be motivated by artistic reasons. The anachronistic kilts worn by the Scots make the rebels more visually distinctive, the incomplete armor and missing helmets allow viewers to recognize the actors, and changes to characters and names make the story easier to follow. Modifications to the sequence of events create dramatic juxtapositions, allowing different lines in the story to appear to occur simultaneously. Some noted critiques include:

olBraveheart's plot includes an affair between William Wallace and the Princess Isabelle, based upon Isabella of France. The film implies she is pregnant at the time of Wallace's execution, possibly carrying the future Edward III of England. Historically, the real Isabella was a child of nine still living in France at this time, she never met Wallace, and furthermore, was never a Princess of Wales, as she was married to Edward II after he became king. Also Edward III of England was born in 1312, seven years after Wallace's death; thus it is impossible for Edward III to have been Wallace's son. (Note: this idea may have been derived from the play Gibson was critiqued for his portrayal of Isabella's future husband, Edward II of England. Although most historians agree that Edward was homosexual, many complained that the film presented demeaning stereotypes towards Edward. In the commentary, Mel Gibson explained he didn't intend to show hate towards anyone portrayed in the film (including the English). It also must be recalled that Mel Gibson did not write the screenplay.The Battle of Stirling Bridge, the first skirmish in the film, was filmed without a bridge. The actual conflict was more of an ambush of the English as they attempted to cross a river. (It is rumoured that Gibson told a Scottish local the bridge was removed as it got in the way, and the local replied "that's what the English found" [1].) The film also makes no mention of Andrew de Moray, Wallace's companion-in-arms and a major contributor at this battle. Curiously, the fight shown in the film is more like the Battle of Bannockburn 17 years later, with English cavalry charging Scottish schiltrons and being repulsed.The film creates the impression that William Wallace invented the Scottish schiltrons and handed out pikes just before the battle. This is completely untrue.Edward I's second wife, Margaret, whom he married in 1299, is absent from the film, although the span of history covered in the production includes this year. This implies his first wife Eleanor of Castile was his only spouse.s switching sides and joining Wallace's forces at the Battle of Falkirk. The Irish forces were hired mercenaries who, from all accounts, fought well for Edward I. The Celtic soldiers who did display some rebellious tendencies were the Welsh, who had been conquered about a decade earlier. Edward I intended to use them as the first wave of attack and essentially as schiltron fodder. They did not take kindly to such intentions, even if they did not actually switch sides.The film implies that Wallace's rebellion took place against a background of a fairly lengthy English occupation of Scotland. Actually, they had only invaded Scotland the year before (1296) and the mass hanging of Scottish nobles which Wallace witnessed as a boy never happened.The sword carried by Gibson is a 16th century Scottish claymore. While a sword which is claimed to have belonged to Wallace (although this is disputed) exists in Scotland, it is significantly simpler.), the supposed right of a Lord to deflower virgins in his territory, actually existed, but it certainly did not exist in either England or Scotland during this period.It is unclear whether Wallace had a wife or what her name was, but according to Scottish tradition her name was Marion Braidfute, apparently her name was changed to Murron in the film so audiences would not confuse her with Maid Marian from the Robin Hood stories.Wallace's long-standing hatred for the English may not have been because of his wife's death. According to one legend, it arose from the fact that two English soldiers challenged Wallace over some fish he had caught. The argument escalated into a fight, resulting in Wallace killing the soldiers.The then-future King Robert the Bruce is described as "Earl of Bruce", but actually, his title before becoming king was suggests Wallace supported the Bruce claim to the Scottish throne; however, Wallace supported the Balliol claim while Bruce was convinced of his father's rightful succession.The movie depicts Robert the Bruce's father (who was also named Robert) as a leper. There is no historical record of this though Bruce himself contracted a disease before his death that has sometimes been alleged to be leprosy.Bruce did not betray Wallace at Falkirk. He did eventually switch sides but that was a few years later and as a result of a dispute with the Comyns (not depicted in the film) who supported the Balliol claim to the throne. The Scottish war effort collapsed a few years later because of the defeat of their French allies by the Flemish at Courtrai in 1302. Wallace was hunted down when the Scots were forced to surrender in 1305.In his speech before the battle of Stirling Bridge, Mel Gibson's Wallace alludes to a hundred years of tyranny. Ironically, the 13th century was one of the few centuries when Anglo-Scottish relations were relatively peaceful. This changed after the unexpected death of Alexander III in 1286, when Edward I stepped in to resolve the dispute over the Scottish crown, and used this opportunity to revive English claims of overlordship.The film depicts Edward I dying at the same time as Wallace was executed. In fact, Wallace's execution took place in 1305, in Westminster, and King Edward died in 1307, two years later, en route to put down a fresh rebellion of the Scots, led by Robert the Bruce.In battle, Wallace is shown painted blue with woad, a fashion that had become extinct at least with the Picts, some 5 centuries before his time, if not even earlier. quite candidly.

For a historical treatment of events see the William Wallace entry. However, as the film notes "history is written by those who have hanged heroes".

In 1997 a statue of Gibson as "William Wallace" was placed in the car-park of the Wallace Monument near Stirling, Scotland. The statue, which includes the word "Braveheart" on Wallace's shield, was the cause of much controversy and one local resident stated that it was wrong to "desecrate the main memorial to Wallace with a lump of crap". In 1998 the statue was vandalised by someone who smashed the face in with a hammer. After repairs were made, the statue was encased in a cage at night to prevent further vandalism. This has only incited more calls for the statue to be removed as it now appears that the GibsonWallace figure is imprisoned; an irony, considering that the statue bears the word "Freedom" on the plinth.

soundtrack has become popular with consumers and the soundtrack has recorded strong sales levels. The soundtrack is composed by composer James Horner, who also composed soundtracks for . Although many film score critics have problems with the score, noting that it relies too much on Horner’s own material, consumers have been drawn to the Scottish and Celtic music that is integrated into the score. The first soundtrack was so successful that Horner produced a follow-up soundtrack in 1997 titled . International and French versions of the soundtrack have also been released. The original album contains 77 minutes of background music taken from significant scenes in the film.

(1997)