Film: Napoleon

 

GENRE: Bio-Drama
RATING: R for strong violence, sexual content, brief language
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 38 minutes
PLATFORM: Movie Theatre
STARRING: Joaquin Phoenix (Walk the Line, Gladiator, Joker, Her)
Vanessa Kirby (The Crown, Mission: Impossible - Fallout)
DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Bladerunner, The Martian)
WRITER: David Scarpa (The Last Castle, All the Money in the World)
PLOT: The rise and fall of Napoleon with a focus on his battles, wife & politics

FULL DISCLOSURE: I don’t know much about history.

STORY STUFF: I’d say I liked almost two-thirds of the film. The battle scenes were very well done and what kept me the most invested. The relationship between Napoleon and Josephine was strange and full of horniness. The political stuff was boring and made the story drag a number of times. It could be that I know nothing about French Revolution stuff so maybe it was just over my head. Like the man, this film tried to conquer too much. Also, what happened to Josephine’s children from her previous marriage? They just disappeared.

ACTING STUFF: Phoenix plays Napoleon well, especially when he’s having fun (the line about the boats made me laugh out loud). The warped relationship he has with Josephine is at times humorous but also melancholic. The battle scenes show him as a cunning strategist but also he’s sleeping while standing up. I know Phoenix usually plays psychological characters who don’t talk much but it’s not always fun to watch. Kirby plays Josephine more modern and more like Marie Antoinette than I expected. No one else in the cast really stood out to me.

ARTISTIC STUFF: Like I said before, the battle scenes are incredible. The Battle of Austerlitz has amazing shots full of underwater mayhem. The look is very epic in nature which makes the movie theatre a good place to see the film. The ending has a graphic of how many people died in Napoleon’s battles. Not sure what point was trying to be made. How many died on the other side? Am I supposed to not like Napoleon because a bunch people died in a war? Felt odd to end that way. I’m a geek and enjoyed the font choice.

VERDICT: Three stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You are into epic histories and have time on your hands
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Please Don’t Destroy; Wonka