"Ridley Scott's Napoleon Official trailer." Topic

This is the official trailer ror Apple TV's Napoleon not the one coddled together from War and Peace the Duellists etc

YouTube link

Looks great, but ALL of that is going to be in one movie?

+1 PzGeneral

Napoleon deserves at least a mini-series.

And CGI de-aging of the actor playing him during his youth.

(Personally, I also think a mini-series about Napoleon should be in the actual languages of the participants (French, German, Russian, Polish, English, Spanish, Portuguese, etc.), but… now I'm just being petulant.)

Mmmm, looks like they've made a Napoleon film but given him the character of Alexander the Great. I'll see it nonetheless.

Everything in the trailer seemed to fall between the Reign of Terror and Austerlitz, with no Bonaparte before 1797--a fair bit of ground, but doable. We'll see.

My first thought otherwise is that they were short on cavalry. Gone are the days of CB Demille, Errol Flynn and the Gower Gulch cowboys!

I'll definitely watch this although there is the usual wonkiness, i.e. Napoleon leading a cavalry charge against Russians (I think) in a bizarre formation of a 2 rank line (or maybe really dense skirmishers only 15 feet in front of the formed troops) backed by battalions in a formation of 1 company wide by 7(?) deep with like 10 feet between battalions, with cavalry right behind the infantry and artillery behind that.

Some of the other scenes definitely look like post-1805, specifically French in blue with shakos with imperial plates, although again that may be part of a 100 days chunk in the movie.

The scene with the English I'm guessing is a flash-forward to Waterloo as I'm not sure where else they would run into cuirassiers.

I always enjoy what Ridley Scott creates, so I am looking forward to this.

Didly Squott's battle scenes are terrible. Everything depicted in 'Gladiator' was ignorant and stupid, and everyone has told him how great all that hogwash was ever since. So we should expect something equally if not even more stupid.

So much doom and misery and no-one has even seen the film yet! LOL

In terms of historical accuracy – come on – of course we all want them to be right and accurate as possible, but when it comes to historical films, we have to remember that they are just that – films – films made for entertainment. They are not documentaries.

I'll be looking forward to seeing it. And going by the trailer, the cannons recoil, so what's there not to like. LOL

Not sure if Joaquin Phoenix will be a better Napoleon than Rod Steiger but time will tell. So I suggest everyone sit back and enjoy. Leave your Anti-Nap and critics hat off and let yourself be entertained!

poor Boney, a pity they cannot depict him as a brave officer of sang froide, a seasoned gunner like him – stands behind the shock waves of sound and still is clutching his ears, Boney afraid of sound? And then of course ready to jump on all those myths, trapped Russian Army at the iced lakes at battle of Austerlitz – well hopefully it will be good entertainment.

Easy call: I'm in.

Looks like it might be a fun movie.

My therapist called before this trailer dropped and said it was okay, he loses in the end. I can buy many tickets to this movie as we know all of us will.

I doubt Apple TV would make much of a profit if they made a film that met the approval of most of this forum?

Napoleonolliwood way of rewriting History, laughed a lot about the Austerlitz scene, wonder who and if there has been a historical advisor (a serious and French one, which are quite a lot nowaday)

He definitely looks way too old for the earlier part of his career and clearly this is going to be the legend spiced up further in the best Hollywood tradition. I assume the 'trap' on the frozen lake is meant to be Austerlitz? If so it should be about waist deep and I doubt anyone who wasn't injured drowned.

I saw 'The Whiff of Grapeshot', 18 Brumaire, the Battle of the Pyramids, the Coronation, Austerlitz, Moscow burning and Waterloo. I take the point on the lakes at Austerlitz, but … I will watch this and probably buy the DVD. I mean it's Ridley Scott for Pete's sake and he made The Duellists'.

Oh, and the guns are recoiling.

It's only 2 hours and 38 minutes?

Looks goo though.

Looks Amazing!

Can't wait to see it

Historically this will be so-so, but based on the trailer this looks really good. As long as we don't get any modern social inserts i am ok, although i have to admit i did enjoy the music in the movie "Marie Antoinette", not so keen about the accents.

Looks worth seeing. Of course it's going to play loose with facts, something Hollywood always does, ( I still don't always understand why when the facts of Napoleon's life and the events of the era are themselves all so interesting and full of drama and narrative.)I think a 10 hour long mini series would be best – like the one from 2000 but also using perhaps two different actors for young and older Napoleon

Fortunately, Hollywood doesn't care about our opinions here. If it sparks interest in the period I am all in. It's about time something other than superheroes grabs the public. Historical drama is good.

I am concerned I about the long run time. If it isn't fast moving it may not stick.

It wasn't a Ridley Scott film, but we all lived through the Patriot, and that was a whole bunch of different battles and nonsense all thrown together, and we loved it. Let's look at it for what it will be. An entertaining movie.

I doubt Apple TV would make much of a profit if they made a film that met the approval of most of this forum?

That's a safe statement, because there will never be a consensus here…

I find it a complete mystery that filmmakers can't figure out how to make the actual lives and times of the most melodramatic figures and periods in history into good films. The principles of storytelling have been documented and analyzed to death, costuming and fight choreography and special effects are at an all-time high water mark of refinement, film budgets are astronomical, the topic of history itself is more full of experts and knowledge than at any other time in human history, and yet… everything is modeled on Marvel movies. FFS!

A "good historical drama" doesn't have to be 100% accurate to the last detail; it has to make an earnest attempt to get "the history" right, adhere to at least one expert consensus of the course of events, give characters dialogue and interactions that are riveting to watch, and immerse the audience. The human elements that make good drama permeate history, and any period can be brought to life by good showrunners and script writers. The Lion In Winter remains one of my favorite movies of all time, and I can't think of too many more boring topics than "a Christmas with an obscure English king".

The Wars of the Roses are a soap opera with Medieval battles. The story arc of Charles I/Cromwell/Charles II could be the same thing in a later era.

The story of Alexander's Successors could make Game of Thrones look lame.

The story arc of literally any famous monarch could make a series like Yellowstone seem small and provincial. How about Frederick the Great?

The story of Caesar's career and end could be a riveting 6 season drama that makes Breaking Bad look like a silly fantasy. (And the struggle between Octavian and Mark Antony would be a way better sequel than Better Call Saul.)

Napoleon deserves an entire Napoleonic Cinematic Universe of movies, TV series, short films, spin-off shows, recurring heroes and villains, relationships that develop and change over many film projects… all of it. (Extra points if the characters all speak their actual languages.)

History is full of drama and excitement, and all you have to do to find it is open a history book. Nobody in Hollywood has any vision.

- Ix

I am seeing this movie! Wait, Apple TV? This belongs on IMAX. If it is Apple TV then a mini-series is needed. I am still going to watch it. Sign up for Apple TV and then cancel it.

We loved the Patriot? Well I suppose we're a very broad church.

The Patriot? A wide church indeed! (A burnt down church?) Paradoxical when we all look for ‘historical accuracy'. And of course the cast list forgot to say that the British Army was played by the Waffen SS.

what i would hope for but probably wont get with the film is a film that could make clear how exactly napoleon was able to brush aside the old regime of europe with his grande armee – what did he do at Austerlitz and Jena-Auerstedt that his opponents were unable to counter against

its not just going to be be that he is portrayed as being simply more merciless i hope and i hope also some of the glory is in his marshals and not napoleon alone.

will Ney, Murat, Davout, Soutl, LaSalle, Oudinot et al be present at all?

Ridley Scott is now 85 and he seems to be completing his bucket list. Gladiator2 and Alien2 are both in the works.

Wargamers don't pay for production costs.

I have seen a partial cast list and Junot, Davout and Ney are being played by some well-known actors. There may be more.

I wonder who's going to play the duke of Enghien?

Ed White is playing the Duc de Enghien.

So there are roles listed for:
Napoleon, Davout, Ney, Berthier, Eugene, Marchand, la Bedoyere
Tsar Alexander and Blucher
Paul Barras, Marie-Antoinette, Josephie, Marie-Louise, Fouche, Hortense, Caroline, Duc d'Enghien

But no English or Austrian figures except for General Stewart and another "British General"

The cast list: link

Looked a bit overblown to me.

No role for Bill Shatner? Seriously?

As I posted on the related thread:

You're joking aren't you? It's stuffed to the gunnels with 21st century mannerisms. And some tart who looks like she's been computer generated.

I hoped that it would be a tour-de-force. But it seems, more like a tour-de-faible

"No role for Bill Shatner? Seriously?"

The….deliverrrry….OF…hizzz….lines would add another hour to the film!

After a time, there will be an actual film and people can comment on plot, character and suchlike. Not much point in getting worked up over a trailer. Almost bound to be some decent stills or clips on Youtube, though. As the saying goes "when old directors die, they become cameramen."

The secret of true happiness is low expectations.

yes Robert that is no doubt the best attitude to take – low expectations is probably what we should have entering into the cinema for any hollywood film nowadays

ridley scott may do films on historical subjects or in historical settings but he is no Kubrick and his plots are always pretty straightforward affairs

I don't have high hopes for Ridley Scott and historical subjects. But I'd certainly be interested in a well-done movie about Napoleon. Will this be on? We shall see. I'm awfully particular.

I also have to hope it will be available in a conventional way and not restricted to some subscription streaming service only. If I can't get a DVD or go to a theatre, I'm going to be SOL.

Earlier this year I read that Speiberg was developing a seven part series for HBO based on Kubricks research for his unmade
Napoleon film .
Netflix was working with the French on a new restoration of Abel Gance's Napoleon.
We may never see these 'projects' appear – give Ridley Scott his due – he gets things done.

Okay. I'd like to see what Spielberg might do with Kubrick's outline and drafts. A true shame Kubrick never got to make HIS Napoleon flick. It would have been terrific.

Gance's film is a classic, despite being only a partial story, and being, you know, OLD. A new restoration will be interesting to see. I got so used to the USA cut from the mid-80s I could never adjust to the later restorations and UK soundtrack, but what the hey.

I suspect this will be such a turkey it will poison the well for anything similar for decades to come, like `Waterloo` did.

Interesting comment here…

link

Armand

cut out historical and see it as pure entertainment, otherwise the director rehashes the worst myths and propaganda stories, 13 Vendémiaire, Bonaparte wasn't running the show – it was Barras, Bonaparte wasn't even in charge of the artillery, it was Gassendi, Bonaparte wasn't even second in command, he was one of at least 8 generals present, he was maybe ADC to Barras, it wasn't as such a mob, but armed Parisian sections who attacked.