Palmerin Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 The story of Desiree Clary and Napoleon is very interesting and moving, so why did the movie with Simmons and Brando come out so dull? The only thing I can praise of that bore is that Simmons looks really pretty in the fashions of Napoleon's time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arturo Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 The story of Desiree Clary and Napoleon is very interesting and moving, so why did the movie with Simmons and Brando come out so dull? The only thing I can praise of that bore is that Simmons looks really pretty in the fashions of Napoleon's time. Maybe too much talking and.speechifying, not.enough.action. I agree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Kimble Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Maybe too much talking and.speechifying, not.enough.action. One "battle scene" is a CU of lances with banners on them, sounds of cannons, and smoke flowing across the screen... Then dissolve to yet another drawing room set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lydecker Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I really want to like this movie since I love Jean Simmons and Michael Rennie. It is a wonderful (true) story but somehow it just doesn't make it on screen. The book is way more interesting. Lydecker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedracer5 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I'd say that the casting of Marlon Brando as Napoleon was the biggest problem with this film. His mumbly speech doesn't do much to bring the vivacious and charismatic Napoleon Bonaparte to life. I'm trying to think of who would have been better for the role... Errol Flynn. No. By this point, too old and too tall. James Cagney. No. The height is right, but he too would have been too old. Claude Rains. Height right. But too old. I'm at a loss as to who I would replace Brando with; I'm sure someone else could think of someone though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Kimble Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 http://www.historyrundown.com/was-napoleon-bonaparte-really-so-short/ Because of numerous paintings, movies and cartoons, we often imagine Napoleon Bonaparte as an unusually short man, even when compared to his contemporaries. However, the myth that Napoleon was short stems primarily from the fact that he was measured 5 feet 2 inches few years before his death. However, this was his height in French feet and french inches, which were little bit larger than imperial units. In modern units, Napoleon was actually 5 feet 7 inches tall. When compared to average height in today’s France, it really isn’t much, however, in the 19th century, average male height was less than 5 feet 5 inches. That means Napoleon Bonaparte was actually quite tall for his time. Although Napoleon was sometimes considered short even during his lifetime, this stems solely from the fact that he was always accompanied by bodyguards , who had to be taller than the average. When compared to his guards, he logically looked smaller, thus earning him the nickname ”The Little Corporal”. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arturo Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 http://www.historyrundown.com/was-napoleon-bonaparte-really-so-short/ Richard, How about the average height in Corsica, an Italian speaking island, since that is where he was from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedracer5 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Richard, How about the average height in Corsica, an Italian speaking island, since that is where he was from? Richard- thank you for the link. I didn't realize that Napoleon's short stature was actually an urban legend. I guess the term "Napoleon Complex" isn't based on fact. Arturo- That's a very interesting question. I didn't realize that Napoleon was Italian! I always thought he was French. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Kimble Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 How about the average height in Corsica, an Italian speaking island, since that is where he was from? He spent most of his life in France, and the French are the people he would have been compared to at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arturo Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Richard- thank you for the link. I didn't realize that Napoleon's short stature was actually an urban legend. I guess the term "Napoleon Complex" isn't based on fact. Arturo- That's a very interesting question. I didn't realize that Napoleon was Italian! I always thought he was French. Well, he is French by nationality, since.Corsica.Was.annexed.by France. But Corsicans speak variations of Italian. However, Sardinia, just south of Corsica, and belonging to Italy, has it's own Romance language, Sardinian, spoken over most of that island; ironically, the northernmost tip of Sardinia speak the southernmost variety of Corsican Italian. Another language, a version of Aragones or Catalan, Iberian languages, is spoken in an enclave of Sardinia, a reflection from when Aragon ruled Sardinia. Btw, at the beginning if DESIREE, Bonaparte was pronounced and I believe spelled in the Italian manner ( Napoleone Buonaparte?). Richard Deacon makes reference to his name disparagingly. Napoleon later Francofied his name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NipkowDisc Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Desiree starring Henry Gibson and Elizabeth Montgomery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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