Napoleon (2023) review

 

When I first heard about Napoleon being made I wasn't exactly too thrilled but once Ridley Scott was on board to direct with Joaquin Pheonix set to star is the titualr man himself I was a lot more interested, in fact it was easily one of my most anticipated movies to end this year. And now I've seen it and to be honest I'm quite torn. In some aspects its a playful almost fruitful comedy while on others it is grand and epic but not so much that it becomes over bearing. It's a mix of things and it just doesn't work all the time unfortiunately. 

The story is something everyone should know. Napoleon Bonaparte the once French Military Commander and political leader who rose to prominence during the French Revolution. He led many successful campagins during the Revolution Wars but was ultimately struck down and left alone to live out the rest of his life on an island all of his own making for lust for power. Perfomance wise Napoleon is not exactly the greatest. It is nowhere near a power house performance from Joaquin Pheonix rather a bit flat and muted. His co-star Vanessa Kriby isn't good at all here and the two barely have any chemistry which was disappointing be that the point or not it just didn't sit right with me. 

Napoleon isn't some grand epic that will live long in your memory it's honestly quite timid and underwhelming. There is some great stuff in here like a giant battle across an entire ice sheet that is blown to pieces by cannon fire resulting in mena nd their horses plummeting to their icy demise but once the credits roll you'll likely have forgotten about it not long after. Napoleon isn't bad by any means but it'll just leave you with a feeling of what could've been if everyone was on tip top form.

★★★