Braveheart (1995)
Let’s jump ahead a little more than a century to the reign of Edward I—a.k.a. Edward Longshanks. Henry II’s great-grandson ruled England from 1272 to 1307, and he spent much of his time repressing various rebellions—including the Scottish rebellion led by William Wallace (Mel Gibson) chronicled here. Extra-credit monarchs seen in this bloody, moving tale of freedom and repression include Edward II, who claimed the throne briefly after his father’s death before he was deposed, and Robert the Bruce, who eventually led Scotland to independence in 1306. The movie won a slew of Oscars, and how Patrick McGoohan wasn’t nominated for his work as Longshanks is beyond me.
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