My Bride and I and our son will be seeing the new Napoleon movie on Wednesday. Very early on Sunday morning my Bride and I watched the film Desiree (1954) on YouTube. Forgotten today, it was advertised in 1954 as the next Gone With the Wind. Such was not the case. Jean Simmons as Desiree, Napoleon’s one time fiancee, and Michael Rennie as Marshal Bernadotte, her husband, give first rate performances. Marlon Brando as Napoleon is the standout. It is a brilliant performance, but we are always aware that it is Brando playing Napoleon.
Desiree was the French shop girl who ended up Queen of Sweden, the House of Bernadotte reigning in Sweden to this day, one of the more lasting results of the Napoleonic era. Although not particularly religious, Desiree refused to convert to Lutheranism, and lived and died a Catholic, outliving both her husband and her son.
I’ll be interested in seeing your take on the Napoleon movie. Not a lot to admire about him from what I have read but that doesn’t mean the film won’t be well worth seeing. I’m pretty suspicious of Hollywood these days, wondering what the propaganda angle might be. As such I’m quite selective of what I choose to see. But a good historically accurate film is usually worth seeing.
I just discovered this movie and enjoyed it over the weekend! I read the book as a girl.
Napoleon was a quite interesting person but most film portrayals depict the autocrat that he was rather than the rest of his character. I do not plan to view this version of some producer’s point of view.