A point about historical advisors in films

In which I relate an anecdote which is fairly depressingly illuminating when it comes to how much Hollywood really cares about historical authenticitude.

www.LloydianAspects.co.uk

Category:

Education

Tags:

• film
• movie
• hollywood
• historical
• consultant
• advisor
• authentic
• authenticity
• history

[KimmoKM]

I don't know how knowledgeable you are about Chinese history or if you have watched this one, but do you have any opinion about The Romance of Three Kingdoms (1995) TV-series? Sure, it follows the novel rather than real history and as such as some minor supernatural elements and such, but if we disregard those, it appeared quite authentic to me. Do you have anything to say about it?

[lindybeige]

@KimmoKM Sorry - haven't seen it.

[procrastinator99]

Umm, I'm not sure if you're the person to ask, but I'm going to ask anyway: was the HBO show Rome actually authentic?

[lindybeige]

@procrastinator99 In some ways, yes. I liked the interior sets a lot. The battle sequences were not great (testudo in open battle? I think not).

[lindybeige]

@Bull3pr00fTWC Alexander was a terrible film. For one thing, Alexander's mother was not younger than her son.

[lindybeige]

@1990christopher My consistent experience is that truth is more involving and interesting than fiction. In this film, the truth was much more interesting than the story they concocted.

[NorHuxy]

I spotted you here on Youtube two hours ago on my quest for chainmail knowledge - fell in love and been browsing your videos ever since. Now, studying filmmaking and trying to improve my filmtechniques before earning money on it, I find your commentary on these topics very interesting.

I find myself to aim towards having it historically correct, but one can only do so much (especially on my budget) before you just say "Noone will notice" or simply "Artistic license!".

Thanks.

[KatayokoNoTenshi]

"That's a cavalry standard"

Oh wow.

There's that story isn't there about the filming of Henry V where the advisor argued strongly against them lowering knights onto horses with cranes as opposed to ... well just getting on the horses.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

[allpartoftheplan010]

They do the same with scientific advisors on 'hard (and soft)' sci-fi films. While Sunshine is one of the better examples, I suspect the scientific advisor for Armageddon still suffers nightmares...

Having said that, never let a bad fact get in the way of a good story.

[lindybeige]

@KuroNekoPL Yes, so why does it make speeches about freedom and democracy, clearly aiming a message at someone? They should have left those out.

[lordrah]

@maxaslagolis The director actually said he didn't really care much about the accuracy, but that he wanted it to reflect the legend of it, rather than the whole truth. He wanted to romanticize it, like the pictures of thermoplae. It may not have been a good reason, but now you know what it was.

[KuroNekoPL]

@maxaslagolis It was based on a comics, It wasn't supposed to be historically accurate. I guess, that nobody takes it seriously...

[maxaslagolis]

300...Worst historically accurate movie ever made i knew the battle of themoplae so well then they fucked they messed up the story line and left out the several other greek cities that came to there aid during the attacked and the thespians and the thebans that stayed for the actually 300 battle on the third day...That movie made me mad...

[VaterYester]

@1990christopher Stupidity and ignorance are not exciting. They are sources of misinformation to the uninformed and a source of aggravation to those in the know. Nobody wins. Truthful depictions are usually much more involving, not just to history buffs, especially when they show practical considerations instead of hand-waving and plotholes.