Napoleon
A biopic of former Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, tracing the Corsican's career from his schooldays (where a snowball fight is staged like a military campaign) to his flight from Corsica, through the French Revolution (where a real storm is intercut with a political storm) and the Terror, culminating in his triumphant 1797 invasion of Italy.
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Cast
76 people
Albert Dieudonné
Napoléon Bonaparte
Known for
The Assassination of the Duke de Guise
Nicolas Roudenko
Napoléon Bonaparte (Child)
Also in
André Cornelis
Edmond van Daële
Maximilien Robespierre
Known for
Cœur fidèle
Alexandre Koubitzky
Georges Jacques Danton
Also in
Napoléon Bonaparte
Autour de Napoléon
Antonin Artaud
Jean-Paul Marat
Known for
The Passion of Joan of Arc
Wooden Crosses
Abel Gance
Louis Antoine Léon de Saint-Just
Known for
The Fall of the House of Usher
Gina Manès
Joséphine, Viscountess of Beauharnais
Known for
Cœur fidèle
Nicolas Koline
Tristan Fleury
Also in
The Burning Crucible
La dame masquée
Annabella
Violine Fleury / Bernardine Eugénie Désirée Clary
Known for
Hôtel du Nord
Le Million
Marguerite Gance
Charlotte Corday
Known for
The Fall of the House of Usher
Yvette Dieudonné
Élisa Bonaparte
No other roles listed
Eugénie Buffet
Letizia Bonaparte
Also in
La joueuse d'orgue
Abel Gance Director · Arthur Honegger Composer Léonce-Henri Burel Cinematographer
Worldwide gross $2.5M · United States release September 1, 1979 · Produced in France
Box office
Worldwide gross
$2,539,448
Production
Société Westi
Production
Ciné France
Production
Films Abel Gance
Production
Isepa-Wengeroff Film
Production
Pathé Consortium Cinéma
Production
Société générale des films
Production
France
Produced in
Languages
Original title
Napoléon
Original language
French
Spoken on screen
No dialogue
Release dates
Germany · January 10, 1927
Limited theatrical · under 3 hours - Version with Final Tryptych
France · November 14, 1927
Limited theatrical · 4h10 - Version with Final Triptych
United States · September 1, 1979
Limited theatrical · 4h50 restoration (1st by Kevin Brownlow), Telluride Film Festival
Brazil
January 1, 2000 · Theatrical · IMDB
France
April 7, 1927 · Premiere · 4h10 - « Opéra » version (short version) with Final Tryptych
May 8, 1927 · Premiere · 9h22 - « Apollo » version (long version) without Final Triptych
November 13, 1982 · Limited theatrical · 5h13 restoration (2nd by Kevin Brownlow)
July 17, 1992 · Limited theatrical · 5h28 restoration (by Bambi Ballard)
May 14, 2024 · Premiere · 7h restoration (La Cinémathèque française), Cannes Film Festival
July 4, 2024 · Limited theatrical · 7h restoration, La Seine Musicale (cinema screening with live music)
July 10, 2024 · Theatrical · 7h restoration (La Cinémathèque française)
November 22, 2024 · TV · 7h restoration, France 5
November 25, 2025 · Physical · 4K Release Potemkine Films
Italy
August 20, 1953 · Premiere · Restoration (by Henri Langlois and Marie Epstein), Venice Film Festival
Netherlands
December 19, 2016 · Physical · Blu ray
United Kingdom
June 1, 2000 · Limited theatrical · 5h30 restoration (3rd by Kevin Brownlow)
November 1, 2016 · Physical · Blu-Ray & DVD (BFI) based on the 5h30 restoration (3rd by Kevin Brownlow)
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