10 Brilliant Historical Movies With Unforgivable Inaccuracies
9. Prince Edward Would Never Have Been Allowed To Escape - Outlaw King (2018)
Starring Chris Pine as the famed Robert the Bruce, Outlaw King can be seen as the thematic sequel to Braveheart (1995). After the bid for Scottish sovereignty is dismembered, along with William Wallace, Bruce rises up in an attempt to gain independence for his country.
Whereas Braveheart was riddled with historical inaccuracies (we'll get to that later) Outlaw King does a pretty good job of capturing the reality of this time period. The costume design is fairly spot on, and the events happened more or less in the order they are presented. For the most part, any inaccuracies are excusable for the sake of telling a good story.
Having said that the filmmakers made several decisions that neither made sense for the story or reflected the history. The final showdown depicts the Battle of Loudoun Hill, and apart from a few divergences from the tactics used, it is an effective scene which more or less captures the reality of Medieval combat. However, towards the end of the battle the former Prince Edward (now king) offers single combat to Bruce. He loses and then is allowed to flee.
This moment pretty much ruins the movie. Not only was Prince Edward not at the battle, but had he been, there is no way such a valuable hostage would have been allowed to escape.