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The rise and fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France.The rise and fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France.The rise and fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 2 nominations total
Leon Alton
- Party Guest
- (uncredited)
Louis Borel
- Baron Morner
- (uncredited)
Sven Hugo Borg
- Aide
- (uncredited)
Peter Bourne
- Count Brahe
- (uncredited)
Paul Bradley
- Party Guest
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAlthough Marlon Brando didn't take his role seriously--despite every effort by director Henry Koster--"Desiree" outgrossed his other 1954 film, "On the Waterfront (1954)."
- GoofsNapoleon didn't conceive of the idea of attacking Italy. France had been fighting Austria in the War of the First Coalition since April 1792. France and Austria had armies facing each other in northern Italy. Napoleon was appointed to command the French army in Italy on March 1, 1794. he took command on the 26th and proceeded to inflict a series of defeats on the Austrian Army in the eastern Po River valley.
- Quotes
Count Brahe: You will enjoy life in Sweden, madame. Stockholm is called the Venice of the north.
Desiree Clary: [Shivering] I prefer the Venice of the south!
- ConnectionsFeatured in Biography: Darryl F. Zanuck: 20th Century Filmmaker (1995)
Featured review
Brando's Napoleon is the only reason for watching
Recently I viewed for the umpteenth time CONQUEST with Charles Boyer's brilliant Oscar-nominated performance as Napoleon. I have just seen DESIREE for the first time and am intrigued by Brando's take on the man. The make-up department has given him a Napoleonic nose bridge and he has supplied the rest. He plays N. as a moody, passionate, obsessed man, but plays him in a quiet, controlled manner. Only twice in the film does he lose his temper. This is a performance I will go back to and study. Brando's insight is as always stellar. His Napoleon believed so much in his "destiny," that he assumed the rest of the world would fall into place around that obsession. Fascinatnig to watch.
The film itself is a pretty, early CinemaScope epic with Oscar-nominated Art Direction and Costume Design. Jean Simmons does her very best to bring this woman to life, but as others here have observed, Desiree was a rather dull child, noted for her beauty, and little else. That her life was a Cinderella story (from milliner to Queen of Sweden) is of no doubt, but she never seemed to have deserved her good fortune. It is really Brando's film. He has 19 scenes and makes the most of every one.
If you are a Brando or Napoleon fan, do see it, but don't expect much from the story. It's pretty straight-forward with little drama (though the circumstances make for much drama if written properly).
The film itself is a pretty, early CinemaScope epic with Oscar-nominated Art Direction and Costume Design. Jean Simmons does her very best to bring this woman to life, but as others here have observed, Desiree was a rather dull child, noted for her beauty, and little else. That her life was a Cinderella story (from milliner to Queen of Sweden) is of no doubt, but she never seemed to have deserved her good fortune. It is really Brando's film. He has 19 scenes and makes the most of every one.
If you are a Brando or Napoleon fan, do see it, but don't expect much from the story. It's pretty straight-forward with little drama (though the circumstances make for much drama if written properly).
helpful•100
- bbmtwist
- Jun 26, 2019
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Desirée
- Filming locations
- Paris France(location shooting)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,720,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 50 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.55 : 1
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