1995 historical movie Braveheart is considered a classic and it was a huge success. The film picked up five Oscars, including a Best Director for Mel Gibson, who also portrays William Wallace.

Among the most admired things about Braveheart are those fantastic battle scenes, and speaking to Empire magazine, Gibson says that they are the product of careful planning.

“The thing I wanted out of the battle sequences was clarity. I’ve seen a lot of these battle movies and they just turn into mush,” he explains.

“I broke it down to archers and horses and hand-to-hand and who had the high ground and the low ground, everybody was clearly delineated, even though it was often the same bunch of people playing different parts.

“We had the guys from the Irish Army, and one day they were all dressed like Scots and the next day they’d be English. I think there’s a scene where somebody actually kills himself!”

When asked if there were any serious injuries on the set, Mel has revealed he almost got killed.

He said: “There was a horse that nearly killed me. He had a good trick where he did this whole rear-up thing, but he’d also fall backwards, which is a problem if you’ve fallen off first and you’re behind him. He did that to me. My stunt double ran in and pulled me out of the way just as the horse fell.”

Be Sociable, Share!

•