A look at the military commander's origins and his swift, ruthless climb to emperor, viewed through the prism of his addictive and often volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine.
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Vanessa Kirby, Edouard Philipponnat, Rupert Everett, Matthew Needham, Cormac Hyde-Corrin, Anna Mawn, Tahar Rahim
Release Date: November 22, 2023
Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, History, War
Rated R for strong violence, some grisly images, sexual content and brief language
Runtime: 2h 38m
Ridley Scott's Napoleon is a lavishly crafted historical epic with strong turns from its leads but there's a disconnect from its central subject that keeps it from being a truly compelling film. Scott's steady hand delivers a series of wonderfully shot moments with his prowess at large scale action on full display here with a collection of carnage filled sequences which are easily the high points of the film. That shouldn't come as surprise to anyone familiar with the legendary auteur's extensive resume but the film never truly finds its footing whenever its off the battlefield. In those quieter moments the film tries to balance its central love story and Napoleon's rise to power with varying levels of effectiveness. The script paints Napoleon as a boorish and clumsy in its deconstruction of the man sometimes to darkly comedic effect. While it avoids some of the more clichéd approaches to its central figure, it also keeps the audience at arms length from his psyche and never granting us a window into his inner machinations. The script paints him as ambitious but show him falling into power more as a result of others doing than his own drive. Joaquin Phoenix brings what he can to role with his natural talent but he's mostly asked to stare blankly at people with occasional fits of anger sprinkled throughout. Phoenix's understated line deliver works in smaller moments but we never get any bigger sequence that makes you believe his troops would follow him to their own ruin, something driven home during a late stage stand off sequence. Vanessa Kirby fares a bit better as Josephine but script issues keeps her character and ultimately their relationship resonate the way it should. The film rushes through their meeting and courtship so the audience never gets a true sense of whether its a transaction relationship or one based on actual affection. There's a tangible sense that Phoenix and Kirby could do so much more with these characters if they'd had a better script to work with since their scenes together feel disjointed. Its an issue that keeps the film from finding any sort of rhythm which makes the two hour and a half film feel far longer than its actual runtime. The proposed four hour cut of the film might smooth some of these issues but the theatrical cut of Napoleon is a missed opportunity which stays afloat mostly due to the talent behind and in front of the camera.
B-
