Napoleon (1927)

Starring Albert Dieudonne, Vladimir Roudenko, Edmond van Daele, Alexandre Koubitzky, Gina Manes
Directed by Abel Gance
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

The story of the life and formative experiences of Napoleon I, the future emperor of France, is told, including his time at military school, his first battles as an artillery captain, and his romance of Josephine.

A very well-regarded silent epic from acclaimed filmmaker Gance, the film though it takes certain cinematic liberties with history, as all biopics do, is a testament to Gance's talent and an entertaining picture.  Dieudonne cuts a classic figure as Napoleon, with a stoic expression and regal bearing that fits and enhances our image of the man.  Gance, who scripted and edited the film as well, along with playing the part of Louis Saint-Just, places an emphasis not just on showing Napoleon's life, but also his place and time in history, chronicling the scope of the French Revolution and Reign of Terror.  Van Daele is marvelous as the cunning but malevolent Robespierre, his face an expressionless mask under his powdered wig, as he comments on the political state of the nation and signs the orders that will send thousands to the guillotine.  When the time comes for Napoleon's romantic pursuit of Josephine, and indeed she is portrayed as pursuing him as well, Manes is made up as a striking target, beautifully coiffed and costumed, and waving a fan at herself seductively as she stares into the eyes of the young general.  The film's one extended battle sequence takes place in Napoleon's siege of Toulon during a powerful storm, in an attempt to turn back the British and other foreign interests from their control of that port.  As he does throughout the film, Gance uses split screens and recomposed shots to show ghostly images of Dieudonne pervading the screen, to illustrate the breadth of his control of the battle.  However the film's showpiece comes in its final act, as Gance composites three shots end to end in an early widescreen process to bring grandeur to Napoleon leading his troops on an Italian campaign.  Sometimes the composite shots combine to form a single uninterrupted image, and sometimes Gance uses closeups in the center frame to capitalize on the intensity of Napoleon's drive, and his motivation of a starving army given an indomitable will by the General.  As a complete piece of work, the film cuts short Napoleon's biography, not focusing on his rise to power as French emperor, nor his downfall at Waterloo and eventual exile.  However, what Gance has captured is a tribute to the nationalistic spirit the man helped engender in the French, and a worthy tribute to one of the world's greatest strategists.