Chuck-185

Not as bad as its reputation, this film is nonetheless an overlong and unconvincing stab at French History. Common girl Desiree (a whining Jean Simmons in her most forgettable performance) is an early lover of Napoleon (Brando in cruise-control) and is soon dumped for the richer and more politically influencing Josephine (a very attractive and sympathetic Merle Oberon). According to real history, Desiree then married Marshal Bernadotte, eventually became Queen of Sweden and that was about it. Not in this film. She's the center of nearly every crisis in early 19th Century European history and ends up with Napoleon's sword after Waterloo. Bernadotte, played awkwardly by Michael Rennie, is also given far more than his historical due. There's no mention of any of Napoleon's real enemies (e.g. Nelson, Wellington, Blucher etc.) and Brando plays the emperor as merely indifferent and bored to tears by all around him. The sexual tension between Desiree and Napoleon never really materializes in this film, leaving it flat and overblown. There was plenty of passion and action in the days of Napoleon and his empire. Unfortunately, viewers won't see any of those qualities in this film. "Desiree" is a film with a worthy subject matter that could probably stand a decent remake. In fact, forget Desiree herself. A good film about Napoleon is always welcome.

The reviewer from Cleveland, Ohio, (Harry) was obviously hoping for a nice and tidy Politically Correct account of Napoleon. Unfortunately, Napoleon's appetite for conquest turned him off a bit. For the rest of us, this film is one of the great masterpieces of the Silent Era (and the restored version is the one to see). For history buffs, the early years of Napoleon, including the violent French Revolution, is all here in its magnificent and tragic moments. The film doesn't follow through to the inevitable defeats of Napoleon, however. For anyone who's unfamiliar with 19th Century European history, the final impression that all ended well with the Emperor might mislead viewers as the film ends. Gance never filmed the defeats, but his direction of Napoleon's victories is still one of the great achievements of film. You doesn't have to be an admirer of Napoleon to enjoy this movie. Whatever one's opinion of the emperor, this film will remain forever the standard by which all epics and historical dramas should be judged. If one is interested in the final years of Napoleon and his eventual demise, the 1970 Dino De Laurentis production "Waterloo" is the place to start. With Rod Steiger as Napoleon and Christopher Plummer as Wellington, one couldn't ask for a better cast.

"The Lady and the Duke" is based on a true story and taken directly from the memoirs of Grace Elliott, a well-to-do Scottish woman who lived in France during the French Revolution. The film concentrates on her months in Paris during the later years of the revolution (1793-1794), better known as the Reign of Terror. Director Eric Rohmer took the unusual and odd step of filming his actors superimposed over 18th Century scenic paintings. Perhaps it was his intention to contrast these inanimate objects with the real-life pain and utter misery of his subjects' existence. Lucy Russell is elegant and believable as Grace Elliott, a woman torn between loyalties to an old lover and her former aristocratic way of life. As the Revolution becomes more horrific, she sees all her friends who haven't been wise enough to leave France annihilated, and begins to wish she had left the country herself. Jean-Claude Dreyfus is also excellent as the Duke of Orleans, Grace's former lover who still remains a close friend. Although a royal himself, he makes the ruinous decision to vote for the King's death which has disastrous results for both himself and his country. Grace and the Duke's relationship are the centerpiece of the movie juxtaposed against the changing times and the coming doom and radical phase of the Terror. Director Rohmer's movie is both exquisitely mounted and historically knowledgeable. He has taken one of history's more volatile times and brought the audience into all the suffering and injustices of that period. Although one might need to know a bit of history regarding the French Revolution beforehand, this movie can still be viewed by anyone who has sympathy for the human condition. Man's inhumanity to Man is well on display in "The Lady and the Duke".