My brother William (no known relation to William Wallace) asked me the other day if I was aware that Mel Gibson’s Braveheart had recently been released in high-definition Blu-ray video format. I wasn’t, largely because I don’t own a Blu-ray player. Nor do I plan on ever buying one (long story). However, everyone who knows me eventually comes to realize that I have a liking … fascination … okay, obsession with the film Braveheart. I could tell you the number of times I’ve seen it, and in which format. I’ve flown to Scotland, where I visited the town of Sterling and the National Wallace Monument. More than fourteen years after the film’s first theatrical release, I still have its poster image set as the desktop wallpaper on my computer screen. I own several official one-sheets, a cardboard standee of William Wallace, the novelization, the musical scores on both cassette and CD, a CD-ROM game, newspapers announcing its Oscar wins back in 1996, and more. I’ve even got the laserdisc release, when I never owned a laserdisc player. Point is, it was reasonable of William (no known relation to William Wallace) to expect that I would want the Blu-ray version now that it had finally become available. Instead, I told him that I was trying to be fiscally responsible and not purchase another item that served only as a collectible trinket.
The very next evening, a UPS delivery man knocked on my door and handed me a slim, padded envelope. Imagine my delight when I opened it to find a gift purchased by my brother William (no known relation to William Wallace):
Ah, but it’s great to have brothers.