Napoleon: The Director's Cut gets a surprise release on Apple TV Plus, but I still refuse to watch it

Ridley Scott fans rejoice, because Apple just shadow dropped a director's cut of the iconic filmmaker's Napoleon movie on its streaming service.

Five months after Napoleon 's theatrical version initially charged onto Apple TV Plus , the historical epic is getting a runtime upgrade with a boatload of never-before-seen footage. Indeed, Napoleon: The Director's Cut will be 48 minutes longer than the movie that arrived in cinemas last November, meaning this version's runtime clocks in at a mammoth three hours and 26 minutes.

A cut that's nearly an hour longer than its predecessor? What on earth has Scott included in this version that the legendary auteur previously left on the cutting room floor? I'm glad you asked, dear reader – and, for your troubles, here's an insight into what to expect from this extended cut, courtesy of an Apple press release.

" Napoleon: The Director’s Cut stars Joaquin Phoenix as the French emperor and military leader," the press blast reveals. "The film is a fresh and personal look at Napoleon’s origins and his swift, ruthless climb to emperor, viewed through the prism of his addictive and often volatile relationship with his wife and one true love, Josephine, played by Vanessa Kirby.

"The director’s cut delves deeper into Josephine’s origin story and features more extravagant costumes, new larger-than-life sets, and the previously unreleased Battle of Marengo scene. The audience is also given more details about Napoleon’s demise, from his attempted assassination to his failed invasion of Russia."

That's... a lot of new content, but I doubt it'll be enough to improve Napoleon 's standing on our best Ridley Scott movies list, nor do I believe it'll completely change people's views on the movie as a whole.

Why is that the case? Because, based on what I've read and heard, it's not very good. Now, I've not seen Napoleon , so I can't rattle off a list of problems I had with it, but there are many others who were left underwhelmed by the Phoenix and Kirby-starring flick. A cursory glance at review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes confirms as much, with mixed reviews from critics (it currently holds a 58% critical score) and general viewers (59%) alike.

Now, Rotten Tomatoes isn't the universal authority on whether a movie is good or bad. Its cross-section of opinions is pretty small in the grand scheme of things, but it gives us an idea of the common consensus surrounding new movies once they're released. If enough people have said Napoleon is a bang average flick, the likelihood is that's the case. That's in spite of the fact that Napoleon landed three Oscar and four BAFTA nominations during the 2024 awards circuit ( NB: it didn't win any of the prizes it was put forward for), too.

So, as much as I admire many of Scott's films – I'm a huge fan of Gladiator , Alien , Blade Runner , The Martian , American Gangster , Hannibal , and Thelma & Louise in particular – I couldn't bring myself to watch Napoleon . Faced with the prospect of spending an extra 50 minutes streaming a film I'm unlikely to enjoy, I simply can't face the prospect of streaming Napoleon: The Director's Cut , either. Sorry, Ridley, it's nothing personal, but this is not only one of your films I won't be loading up on one of the world's best streaming services , but I also doubt its extended cut will have enough about it to re-join our best Apple TV Plus movies list, too. I'm sure Gladiator II will make up for it, though!

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