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Alexander the Great Overview:

Alexander the Great (1956) was a Historical - Drama Film directed by Robert Rossen and produced by Robert Rossen and Gordon Griffith.

Alexander the Great BlogHub Articles:

Alexander the Great (1963, Phil Karlson)

By Andrew Wickliffe on Jun 11, 2017 From The Stop Button

Had Alexander the Great gone to series instead of just being a passed over pilot and footnote in many recognizable actors filmographies, it seems likely the series would’ve had William Shatner’s Alexander continue his conquest of the Persian Empire. The pilot is this strange mix of occasional ac... Read full article

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Alexander the Great Quotes:

Aristotle: Do you know how vast the Persian Empire is?
Alexander: From the Nile, to the Indus... from Samarkand, to Babylon.
Aristotle: And beyond. Do you know how many different people live there?
Alexander: By heart. Carians, Armenians, Jews, Parthians, Egyptians... I know their customs and their gods.
Aristotle: Yes. But this is more than an empire, this is colossus. To rule it would take a man as great as *you can be*... That is why I say, "Patience".
Alexander: Patience? My time is short.
Aristotle: Short?
Alexander: When the great god Zeus, father of Achilles, gave him his choice of a long life of obscurity and a short life filled with glory, he chose glory. So did I. Achilles died young...
Philip of Macedonia: There's work to do. Farewell, Aristotle.
Aristotle: Farewell - and take these words with you and use them for what they are worth: Alexander is many things. He is logic, and he is dreams. He is warrior, and he is poet. He is man, and he is spirit. He is your son, but he's also *hers*... and he believes himself to be a god.
Alexander: [quoting Book 20 of the Iliad] "... thus beneath great-hearted Achilles his whole-hooved horses trampled corpses and shields together, and with blood all the axletree below was sprinkled, for blood-drops from the horses' hooves splashed them, and blood-drops from the tires of the wheels, for the son of Peleus pressed on to win glory, flecking with gore his irresistible hands."
Aristotle: We Greeks are the chosen - the elect. Our culture is the best - our civilization, the best; our men, the best. All others are barbarians! And it is our moral duty to conquer them, enslave them, and if necessary destroy them!
Aristotle: [speaking before Alexander and his friends ] Wonders are many - but none is more wonderful than Man himself. The Persian way of life has the seed of death, and fear, in it. That of the Greek - of life, and courage.
Aristotle: The gods of the Greeks are made in the image of Men - not men with birds' heads, or bulls with lions' heads, but Men, who can be understood... and felt.
Nectenabus: There were signs of greatness at his birth! Quakes and storms shook the earth - and in the skies, a star fell... and two eagles perched upon the roof of the Queen's chamber. And in far-off Asia... the Temple of Ephesus was struck by lightning and burnt to the ground.
Philip of Macedonia: And how did you read these signs, soothsayer?
Nectenabus: The two eagles - that he was born to rule two worlds. The burning of the Temple - that a torch was kindled that day that would one day consume all the world. And this torch... your son.
Philip of Macedonia: And the falling of the star?
Olympias: That a god was born to me... *of* a god.
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Alexander the Great Facts
Although Richard Burton was only 29 at the time of filming, many critics felt he already looked too old to play Alexander.
Average Shot Length (ASL) = 7 seconds (135 minute version)
Rossen shot the film to run three hours plus an intermission and was very disappointed when the producers cut it to 141 minutes.
The first film of Peter Wyngarde.
Charlton Heston turned down the title role, adding "Alexander is the easiest kind of picture to make badly".
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