Napoleon – Review
158 Minutes, Rated R
Written by David Scarpa
Directed by Ridley Scott
**NOTE: this post may be updated with audio once we actually have the chance to talk about it. Until then, you can read Mark’s review below. Remember, though, you can listen to all our discussions of this and every other movie directly over on ACAST. Stay tuned.**
Synopsis:
An epic that details the checkered rise and fall of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and his relentless journey to power through the prism of his addictive, volatile relationship with his wife, Josephine.
Ridley Scott is back with another historical epic. After 2021’s The Last Duel, we get a… huh – another French film.
Napoleon stars Joaquin Phoenix as the titular Emperor, with Vanessa Kirby as his beloved Josephine.
Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way: nobody does French accents here (*coughcoughBenAffleckMattDamoncoughcough*), which makes the film immensely more enjoyable.
While not a Napoleonic scholar, nobody can be ignorant of the influence of Bonaparte on the history of Europe and warfare. Ridley Scott gives us a soldier who aspires to more, and whose ability to secure victories allows him to rise through the ranks during a period of seemingly-perpetual revolution in his beloved France.
A quick aside: if France hadn’t been at war with itself, Napoleon might never have had the opportunities to show his skill, and so the world might have been spared the tragedies he often brought to bear on other nations as he sought peace through war.
One of my first thoughts on Phoenix’s performance was that he was playing (portraying) a man who combined Emperor Commodus’ ambition with General Maximus’ skill from Gladiator.
Secondly, I am shocked by how much I enjoyed Vanessa Kirby here. I’m honestly not sure I thought she had this in her or not, but I found her Josephine to be utterly captivating (as did Napoleon).
Scott hangs what is basically a love story on a history of the French Revolution, from the early days when the guillotine ran red (beginning the film with Marie Antoinette losing her head), though Robespierre’s years running what became known as the Reign of Terror, acting as judge, jury, and executioner of those who opposed his burgeoning Republic (aka: royalists), though the second iteration of that Republic, as Napoleon secured victory and security at every turn, culminating in his “invitation” to join a coup d’état against that Republic, becoming one of three Consuls, before the French instability (and his own reputation) created an opening for him to be offered the title of “Victorious Consul,” aka “king”, though he took the title Emperor and famously crowned himself.
The irony of history that the defender of the French Republic, who put down the Royalist Revolt in as brutal a way possible (can you say cannons at 50 yards?), became the head of a reinstated Monarchy, don’t you think?
Through his disastrous attempt to subdue Russia (“never get involved in a land war in Asia”), to his subsequent exile, return, and the Battle of Waterloo, leading to his final exile, Napoleon is presented as a man who loved both his country and his power, but was willing to give up the second from love of the first…
…but he couldn’t give up his love for Josephine, leading to his return to reclaim his position to ensure he could have her again.
Some critics are convinced this is a comedic film, but I disagree. Sure, there are moments of petulance by both Napoleon and Josephine as they fight their way through their respective pasts in their current relationship.
Sometimes almost in a Junior High sort of tone, but I let it go because of the rest of the film. This moments simply allowed for a lightening of the otherwise oppressive world im which they lived.
I feel like Ridley’s color palette got more muted as the film went along, perhaps echoing the decreasingly purity of Napoleon’s motives…
…or maybe that’s just the writer in me, wanting it to be that way…
From a practical standpoint, the film is sumptuous, the battle scenes well-constructed and shot, with the final encounter at Waterloo channeling the chaos of the battles in Braveheart and the emotional weight of the (much shorter) Battle of Agincourt from Branagh’s Henry V, though the emotion is more subdued here.
As I watched, I realized why General Patton idolized Napoleon, his recognition of tactics and strategy would certainly carry weight with a student of both war and history as Patton.
With a run-time of 2 hours and 38 minutes, the film truly doesn’t feel rushed, with the pacing making sure that even the “calm” segments never feel “slow.”
I’ve commented before about being able to cut longer films down without impact, but with Napoleon, I’m not sure I could easily cut more than a few minutes.
With Nolan’s Oppenheimer, I could cut 45 minutes and the film wouldn’t suffer narratively, though I don’t begrudge him any of those minutes. Same here, though again, I can’t easily think of anything to cut.
That might be the highest compliment I can give Napoleon in a year of super-long films: I found it worth every single minute.
Napoleon hits theaters on November 22 before streaming globally (and exclusively) on Apple TV+ and stars Joaquin Phoenix, Vanessa Kirby, Tahir Rahim, Rupert Everett, Paul Rhys, Edouard Philipponat, and Miles Jupp.
And remember, if the BEST thing you can say about a movie is that it’s “visually stunning,” then they’ve done something wrong.
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