‘Napoleon’ Movie Review: A Tonally Confused, Underwhelming Ridley Scott Misfire
Photo from Apple TV+
From Joe Peltzer
Ridley Scott likes to play on both sides of the coin with what he puts into theaters, from the sci-fi classic Alien to the oddly-constructed House of Gucci, Thelma & Louise to Hannibal. Napoleon is bound to fall into the middle of the field for the acclaimed director, an aspiring epic with bombastic action pieces mixed in with competing tones and a talented cast that deserved much better.
The Apple Studios film tells the tale of Napoleon Bonaparte (Joaquin Phoenix), a French man born in Corsica who quickly rose through the ranks of the military, participated in a coup d’état, crowned himself emperor, and was later exiled (twice). Military cleverness aside, writer David Scarpa (All the Money in the World) really was starting from a disadvantage given the main character’s brutal history (responsible for millions of his people’s deaths) and somewhat pathetic, insecure temperament. What results is a rather muted performance from Phoenix, who does a serviceable job of coming across cold, calculating, and desperate for approval. There is unexpected humor injected in moments that often feels out of place (“Destiny brought me to this lamb chop,” Bonaparte says during one dinner scene), a perplexing contradictory depiction of Napoleon’s bravado on the battlefield. But it all simply feels improperly constructed, at times wanting to focus on the peculiar mind of the French leader while elsewhere engaging a subplot involving his contentious marriage with Josephine (Vanessa Kirby), all to make, I’m sure, a point that continues to elude me as of writing. One can’t help but feel as though a better film was left on the cutting floor, especially after Scott himself confirmed a 4-hour cut. Perhaps in that version we are permitted to spend more time with the characters and feel something more than fractured responses to cherry-picked moments in their history.
Kirby, for her part, remains an absolute force when on screen, here portraying an equally-determined woman who meets her match in Phoenix’s Napoleon. There is a limit, though, to how much one can explore the depths of a character when given only a shallow box to work within. The romance between Napoleon and Josephine moves as swiftly as the film’s historical events as a whole, allowing for little investment in the questionably-paired acting duo, their chemistry severely lacking. This is largely in part to Phoenix’s sullen demeanor in scenes opposite Kirby, which is perhaps an intentional choice, but a problem nonetheless.
Distractions abound, however, throughout the entire 2 hour, 38 minute runtime of Napoleon. While Phoenix is one of the best actors out there when it comes to being a role contortionist, he does seem miscast for a film detailing a young 20-somethings rise to power and infamy. There also is a lack of any accent from Phoenix’s portrayal, not French, not his native Italian (Corsica’s primary language)… not even an accent. It’s a rather bizarre omission when others in the cast at least attempt to feign authenticity.
The highlights certainly come in the film’s historical transportation of the audience via the costume and production design, the former of which has been called into question by historians, mainly pertaining to Marie Antoinette’s hair. Regardless, Janty Yates and David Grossman spare no details in the day-to-day presentations of the common folk, as well as the numerous militias we see portrayed (though sometimes it is a bit difficult to differentiate). Arthur Max’s production design is equally as impressive, a darker palette used to perhaps visually communicate the tumultuous times and unsettled relations within Europe and beyond. Both are as impactful and simplistic as Martin Phipps’ score, one that doesn’t deviate much from its singular tone, but reflects the overall film. Of note, the sound design during the battles is some of the best that I’ve seen on screen in recent memory.
Napoleon feels as though it should be more effective than it is, instead coming across flat and forgettable with wasted talent given peanuts to work with. Scott’s talent for delivering momentous battle sequences is on full display, but they aren’t enough to carry a film that left me wondering what exactly it was trying to say, if anything at all.
Rating: 2/5
Napoleon hits theaters on November 22nd, 2023.
