@billyo54
Two hundred years and Napoleon hasn't faded into obscurity. As Lady Caroline Lamb said to Wellington, 'you will always be remembered as the man who defeated Napoleon, but Napoleon will always be remembered simply for being Napoleon '.
@lraoux
As a French, I felt disappointed that this movie failed to explain all the reasons why Napoleon is a hero to me. It does way too little to capture Napoleon’s awe-inspiring ascension to power and sheer ambition. Too often, it makes it seem like he was just “there.” There’s really nothing about him spreading Enlightenment ideals from the French Revolution to other countries, the implementation of his Napoleonic Code, or his unprecedented military genius. This is a man who was consistently defeating 3 or more armies at the same time. He did not merely trick the Austrians at Austerlitz simply by leading them into a battle over a frozen lake. It’s fine if you want to make a movie about Napoleon’s love life, but put next to his military conquests, it just felt really disproportionate.
@doublep1980
The scene with Napoleon firing his cannons at the Pyramids and his line about the British ''having boats'', are so cringe. Specially if you consider that: a). Napoleon, like many of his contemporaries in Europe, were admirers of ancient cultures and studied the history of Egypt, Greece, Rome, Babylonia, Persia etc. and b). Napoleon knew how important it is to have a strong navy, because that's how you control the seas and the trade routes. He actually spend huge resources in order to build a massive flee, so he could counter the British Royal Navy, but unfortunately for him, Admiral Nelson destroyed it at Trafalgar. It is said, that he was furious at his admirals, when he got the news that the French fleet was destroyed and all his efforts to take control of the seas from the British were basically foiled.
@Yusuf1187
This is the most direct and brutal review I've seen so far haha. I appreciate you not holding back.
@korbell1089
When Ridley Scott asked Historians how they knew if something happened or not, I KNEW that movie was going to be a glorified mess!
@bradsmovies
After deconstructing fictional heroes like Marvel and Star Wars it's now time for Hollywood to go after actual historical figures.
@FelixDaleth
Thanks, Alachia. Ridley Scott drives me mad. He crafts movies with such care and attention to the way the way they look, he can create eye candy on a budget, and yet he can't write a cohesive story even if his life depended on it. I feel it's one of those cases where no one can tell him no during production and it's to the detriment of the whole affair.
@Tonywkim
Totally spot on review! Scarpa and Scott butchered Napoleon, a complete hatchet job
@sysadmin9396
I just got out of the theaters. I really really wanted to like this, and I told my self people were just hating. Everybody was right lol.. it’s mind boggling how we only really got to see one big victory from a man who was hailed to be one of the best military minds in history. It’s almost as if making him look bad and incapable was done on purpose. Really weird.
@googleaccount718
I would suggest the American moviegoers to visit Paris and see the influence of Napoléon. Another element which Ridley Scott got very wrong: Napoleon was six years younger than Josephine - so why are they played by Joaquin Phoenix, 49, and Vanessa Kirby, 35?
@Conn30Mtenor
One salient feature of Napoleon's army was the excellence of his Marshalls and how good Napoleon was at picking subordinates who could get difficult jobs done well. You can't do this if (1) your troops are crap and (2) if you're not a good judge of character and ability.
@troyriser8074
I'm a military history buff and can state both Napoleon's contemporaries and later historians rate him as one of the most capable generals of all time. Aside from his personal charisma, Napoleon had a specific tactical and strategic gift as a military thinker on the battlefield shared by only a tiny handful of military leaders throughout history: he could conceptualize the battlefield in real-time in much the same way a good quarterback reads the field (although in Napoleon's case obviously on a much greater scale). Napoleon's uncanny grasp of ground and movement enabled him to concentrate his forces at just the right moment at the right place to shatter his opponents. It's been remarked by historians that US Grant had this gift, as did Erwin Rommel and other great generals, but few or none on the level of Napoleon. Based on your review (I haven't yet seen the movie), the audience never gets to see this side of the man, the part of him that was brilliant and unique.
@DBCuzitis
Make a movie of Napoleon portraying him as charismatic, energetic, dynamic, and possessing a brilliant mind. I’d believe that. He rose from obscurity. He seized opportunity. He won the devotion and loyalty of his men and generals. Wow! That would be a Napoleon I could believe in and watch. Focusing on his failings and relationship troubles or “humanizing” him as Hollywood likes to do with big figures just washes out everything interesting about him. Ugh! Give the giant from history first and then the man too to flesh him out and make him real. Was Einstein a genius who changed science and the world? Or was he a patent clerk who got lucky and stumbled on some curious new things. Crazy (bad) way to make a bio pic.
@Highice007
Napoleon was a double-edged sword. He created more rights for the French people in general but repealed women's rights. He outlawed anti Semititism in France, but tried to bring back slavery. He freed Poland from Russia, creating the Dutchy of Warsaw, and at Waterloo there were some Polish soldiers with him, including the famous Polish lancers. (He is mentioned in the Polish national anthem, and bust of him can be found throughout the country) He also had a history of stabbing his allies in the back. He was with his men in many battles, loading and fireing the guns himself, but abandoned his men in Egypt. To some, he was a hero, to some a villan, but perhaps he was to complicated to be called either.
@eXCess9
Thanx Alachia. I was looping forward to an epic historical movie about one of our greatest figure... You're not the only one (french critics included) to take down the movie in multiple ways. I'll save myself 10-15 bucks by not going. As a frenchman, I do appreciate how you cared about our history. Thank you. Love from France Xavier
@renansilva3879
"France? History? Who cares!" - Riddley Scott making this movie.
@VercumPraeses
An epic film about Napoleon was a passion project of Stanley Kubrick’s. It was never made but the screenplay is available. Now I’ve seen that Steven Spielberg is producing the Kubrick project as a miniseries for HBO. I think this would be the way to see a story about Napoleon.
@dbhgray
Napoleon was a brilliant military strategist whose life and career is impossible to condense into a 2 and 1/2 hour film. I knew the film could only display bits and pieces from his career and that was acceptable to me. Joaquin Phoenix was a bit old to play Napoleon as a young officer in his 20's but overall I enjoyed his performance and the film itself. I do recommend that Napoleon 'fans' should watch Waterloo (1970) with Rod Steiger as Napoleon for a better summary of that battle (available on YouTube).
@martinoreilly1525
I've seen about 15-20 reviews of this film so far, but this is the best review. Clear and to the point. I'm a military history nut and was looking forward to watching the movie, but I've decided not to watch it now. I think I'll wait for Spielberg's mini-series about Napoleon instead.
@Highice007