Masterpiece of the Silent Era The reviewer from Cleveland, Ohio, (Harry) was obviously hoping for a nice and tidy Politically Correct account of Napoleon. Unfortunately, Napoleon's appetite for conquest turned him off a bit. For the rest of us, this film is one of the great masterpieces of the Silent Era (and the restored version is the one to see). For history buffs, the early years of Napoleon, including the violent French Revolution, is all here in its magnificent and tragic moments. The film doesn't follow through to the inevitable defeats of Napoleon, however. For anyone who's unfamiliar with 19th Century European history, the final impression that all ended well with the Emperor might mislead viewers as the film ends. Gance never filmed the defeats, but his direction of Napoleon's victories is still one of the great achievements of film. You doesn't have to be an admirer of Napoleon to enjoy this movie. Whatever one's opinion of the emperor, this film will remain forever the standard by which all epics and historical dramas should be judged. If one is interested in the final years of Napoleon and his eventual demise, the 1970 Dino De Laurentis production "Waterloo" is the place to start. With Rod Steiger as Napoleon and Christopher Plummer as Wellington, one couldn't ask for a better cast.