When Ridley Scott, the director of such historical epics as Gladiator, makes a new one, attention must be paid. (You all slept on The Last Duel, so get with it!) His new film is Napoleon, tackling the true story of the notorious general and dictator, as played by Scott’s Gladiator co-star Joaquin Phoenix.
The script for the film was written by David Scarpa, who also wrote Scott’s true crime film All the Money in the World, along with The Last Castle and the remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still; in addition to Phoenix, Napoleon also stars Vanessa Kirby, playing Napoleon’s wife Josephine.
Few filmmakers are as adept as Scott at this sort of massive period moviemaking, and the trailer for Napoleon makes it look like yet another wild cinematic experience. You can watch it below:
READ MORE: Ridley Scott Wants to Release a 4.5 Hour Cut of Napoleon
Here is the film’s official synopsis:
Napoleon is a spectacle-filled action epic that details the checkered rise of the iconic Napoleon Bonaparte, played by Oscar-winner Joaquin Phoenix. Against a stunning backdrop of large-scale filmmaking orchestrated by legendary Ridley Scott, the film captures Bonaparte’s relentless journey to power through the prism of his addictive, volatile relationship with his one true love, Josephine, showcasing his visionary military and political tactics against some of the most dynamic practical battle sequences ever filmed.
Napoleon is scheduled to open in theaters on November 23. It will later stream on Apple TV+. And seriously, go watch The Last Duel. That movie was so good. I don’t know what the heck happened there. And speaking of Gladiator, Scott’s next film after Napoleon is Gladiator 2.
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