Mia Marr

This movie won’t give you much insight into what drove Napoleon to become the ruthlessly ambitious tyrannical emperor we remember him as. The timeline is sprawling and stretched too thin to explain why France is at war at all really. I came out of this film with the impression that Napoleon sort of stumbled into a life of commanding armies but was really more of an apolitical, lovesick dork at heart. What was it that set him apart from other leaders? If this story is meant to be a romance instead, what are the qualities in his wife that move him so deeply? Who knows! The dull writing puts the great work of the rest of the crew to waste. The production design, wardrobe and locations were especially majestic. In terms of the performances, they were fine but Napoleon was just Joaquin Phoenix in a hat.