Expectations remain high when the names Ridley Scott (“The Last Duel”) and Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker”) appear on the poster or in the commercial ads. Since I am a fan of both of these men, how could I resist? I was thrilled at the opportunity to catch their latest collaboration, albeit a week later than originally planned, anticipating something potentially great.
Although I consider myself something of a history nerd, I use the term “history” rather loosely. After all, my grades throughout K-12, as well as college, were not spectacular on the subject of history, but grades do not always reflect interest or the grasp of the material, do they? Perhaps that is merely an easy way of deflecting the challenge of explaining why my grades were not better. Who knows?…if I did know, would my grades be any better?
I know very little about the life and times of Napoleon Bonaparte. With that being said, I might not be the best judge of deciding just how accurate the material was while viewing “Napoleon” on the big screen. I know about the rumors of his small stature conflicting with the fact he was of average build for his day and I know he had a romantic relationship with a woman named Josephine, which carries personal weight, as it is a beloved name in my own family. Josephine was played by Vanessa Kirby (“The Son”), who gave a more-compelling performance, throughout, compared to that of Phoenix, who seemed fairly subdued most of the time. The attempt to showcase their push-and-pull relationship made it seem as though they were able to control and overpower each other, depending on the circumstances, but I can only wonder about how historically-accurate that side of the story actually was.
As expected, the movie contained plenty of bloodshed and violence, not just for the people involved, 
but the animals, too. The scenery was often beautiful to look at and the wardrobes and makeup were as stunning as they were elegant. I realize, of course, that was all to be expected, but we have to be careful not to take those kinds of things for granted, either. If nothing else, these aspects of the film should warrant plenty of notable nominations during the upcoming award season.
Rounding out the rest of the cast are: Tahar Rahim (“The Mauritanian”) as Paul Barras, Ludivine Sagnier (“The Truth”) as Theresa Cabarrus, Sinead Cusack (“Stonehearst Asylum”) as Letizia Bonaparte, Ian McNeice (“The Sandman”) as King Louis the XVIII, Rupert Everett (“My Policeman”) as Duke Arthur Wellesley, Abubakar Salim (debut film role) as Thomas-Alexandre Dumas and many, many more…
As well as everyone performs, “Napoleon” really comes down to Phoenix and Kirby, which stands to reason, but they spend nearly as much time apart from each other, in the film, as they do together. If by some chance Phoenix gains recognition during award season and Kirby does not, I will consider that a shame, as I believe she is more-deserving, but there might be a greater chance we do not hear from either of them. I would look for “Napoleon” amidst the technical and artistic development awards and, possibly, in the directorial category, but not anywhere else, unless my judgment is a bit off the mark.
I liked “Napoleon,” but did not love it. It was not a big letdown, but it was not sensational, either. Ridley Scott was probably the best person for the job to bring this story to life, so maybe it just was not meant to be better than “good.”
Soon, this film will find its way to the streaming services and my fellow critics will likely find a copy of this in the mailbox, as well. I would suggest just waiting to watch it that way, as this is a lengthy movie and possesses something of a slow pace during various times of the story. Again, it was not bad and I would even say it was good, but I cannot recommend paying to see it in a movie theater based on that, for Ridley Scott and Joaquin Phoenix have set the bar much higher than that.
Director: Ridley Scott
Screenwriter: David Scarpa (“All the Money in the World”)
Cinematography: Dariusz Wolski (“House of Gucci”)
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Vanessa Kirby and Tahar Rahim
Distributors: Columbia Pictures (Sony Pictures) and Apple Original Films (Apple TV+)
Release: November 14th, 2023 (Salle Pleyel) and November 22nd, 2023 (United States & United Kingdom)
