First of all I give it a 5 based solely on entertainment value. Historically, it's more like a 2. Regardless Hollywood is not where I go for historical accuracy so it does get somewhat of a pass. The movie was entertaining and did have interesting moments but it felt more mediocre than amazing.
All that can be said is this movie was a wasted opportunity. The relationship between Napoleon and Josephine was inaccurate and bizarre. The battle scenes were ok at best and a huge disappointment at worse. Many of the battles look like they only involved a few hundred men and strangely always took place near encampments.
The movie bit off more than it could chew. Napoleon's life is an epic drama so much so that they skipped entire campaigns and only included 5-10 minutes at best of others to make a 2.5 hour run time. This made the movie feel choppy and disconnected. It would have been better to have focused on only part of Napoleon's life and made sequels to cover the rest.
Phoenix as Napoleon was a major disappointment or almost disaster. Perhaps this was Scott's fault but Phoenix failed on so many levels. The love scenes were weird and some of his lines bordered on silly ("you think you are so great because you have boats!"). This is especially bizarre considering much of the dialogue is historical record so there is little reason to deviate.
Worst of all, the movie failed to convey why Napoleon was great. Why was Napoleon an exceptional battlefield commander? Why was all of Europe terrified of him? How could this man rally 17 year old farm boys to superhuman feats against overwhelming odds whenever they saw him on the battlefield? Why did France sacrifice well over a million men to their deaths and not only welcome him back from exile but give him a massive state funeral 20 years after his death and a place of honor in Paris to this day? Napoleon's life is almost so exceptional and astonishing that his story is too much for even great directors and actors to handle.
Honestly if you want a much better and just as well made movie about Napoleon I highly recommend the A&E miniseries from 2002 called "Napoleon." Far more accurate historically and in depth.
All that can be said is this movie was a wasted opportunity. The relationship between Napoleon and Josephine was inaccurate and bizarre. The battle scenes were ok at best and a huge disappointment at worse. Many of the battles look like they only involved a few hundred men and strangely always took place near encampments.
The movie bit off more than it could chew. Napoleon's life is an epic drama so much so that they skipped entire campaigns and only included 5-10 minutes at best of others to make a 2.5 hour run time. This made the movie feel choppy and disconnected. It would have been better to have focused on only part of Napoleon's life and made sequels to cover the rest.
Phoenix as Napoleon was a major disappointment or almost disaster. Perhaps this was Scott's fault but Phoenix failed on so many levels. The love scenes were weird and some of his lines bordered on silly ("you think you are so great because you have boats!"). This is especially bizarre considering much of the dialogue is historical record so there is little reason to deviate.
Worst of all, the movie failed to convey why Napoleon was great. Why was Napoleon an exceptional battlefield commander? Why was all of Europe terrified of him? How could this man rally 17 year old farm boys to superhuman feats against overwhelming odds whenever they saw him on the battlefield? Why did France sacrifice well over a million men to their deaths and not only welcome him back from exile but give him a massive state funeral 20 years after his death and a place of honor in Paris to this day? Napoleon's life is almost so exceptional and astonishing that his story is too much for even great directors and actors to handle.
Honestly if you want a much better and just as well made movie about Napoleon I highly recommend the A&E miniseries from 2002 called "Napoleon." Far more accurate historically and in depth.
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