Thanks for the memories!

Let's be realistic.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

I've seen this film a number times over the years. Now, it's available at YouTube. Previously, I assumed Desiree was a purely fictitious character. Boy, was I wrong! There's a lengthy article on her on the web. Jean-Baptiste Bernadette also was a real person, who did marry Desiree. In the middle of the Napoleonic wars, he did switch from being a marshal under Napoleon to the heir apparent for the Swedish crown! Most of the things Desiree is pictured doing are reasonably historically accurate, aside from accepting Napoleon's sword as a symbol of his surrender to the allies. Actually, the real Desiree initially was engaged to Napoleon's brother, Joseph, who then switched to marrying her sister, opening the door for Napoleon to become engaged to Desiree. He rather soon broke this engagement when he found Josephine, who provided him with several advantages, but could not produce an heir, despite having 2 children from her guillotined husband. Interestingly, Josephine's granddaughter later married Desiree's son, who was king of Sweden!..... One problem with this screenplay is that Desiree is not really a very interesting person, aside from her beauty and connection with Napoleon and Jean Bernadotte. A number of reviewers complained that Jean Simmons, as Desiree, was too often whiny, or infantile. Well, it happens that this was the way the real Desiree was. So, I don't think we can fault Jean......Several reviewers criticize Marlon Brando's portrayal of Napoleon. Marlon rather looked like Napoleon. We was 5'9" compared to Napoleon's 5'7". But Napoleon actually was a bit taller than the average Frenchman at that time, at 5'5". But , some of his guards were considerably taller, making him look short. Whether Napoleon was deliberate, as Brando portrayed him, or quick and flashy, I don't know......Merle Oberon makes a beautiful Josephine, who doesn't have a lot of screen time.. Michael Rennie makes a tall Jean Bernadette, who was considerably older than Desiree. There seemed to be little passion between them.....The screenplay is mostly an indoor affair, with no direct contact with soldiers in battle. In one scene, Napoleon is ready to begin the Russian campaign. In the next scene, he's back home, defeated. The film lacks any real action or passion. But, I do commend it on it's relatively strong historical accuracy , being based on the novel "Desiree".

Desiree is, first and foremost, historical romance, not history and, as such, deserves to be cut some slack. Directed by the ever reliable Henry Koster, who one year earlier had helmed the movies' first Cinemascope production, "The Robe", it boasts a widescreen panoply of exquisite costumes, sumptuous sets, and gorgeous scenery guaranteed to give its customers an eyeful.The screenplay, written by Oscar winner Daniel Taradash (From Here to Eternity), which follows the title character's infatuation with a young Napoleon Bonaparte from the tail end of the French Revolution to her complete rejection of him after his Moscow defeat, is presented as a series of sporadic vignettes, which move slowly, sometimes tediously, toward its final conclusion. And yet, if you are able to accept the lack of action scenes and concentrate on the characters, the film can be highly enjoyable.Despite what the star billing implies, Marlon Brando's Napoleon is not the main player here (the story is seen almost exclusively from Desiree's point of view) but he is far and away the most interesting. Eschewing the great French military leader's putative habit of tucking his hand in his vest, he is nevertheless able to capture the essence of the man with true conviction. With low-key, well-articulated diction, he presents his Napoleon as a driven individual with a penetrating brain, tremendous powers of concentration, unflagging energy, and the ability to impose his will whenever it suits his needs. Less specifically, he suggests a man with high standards, noble ideals, a love of France, and a sense of honour. Assuredly a remarkable performance, as far from Stanley Kowalski ("A Streetcar Named Desire") as you can get.Desiree, as played by Jean Simmons, has more screen time than Napoleon, and that may be the picture's weakness. Her story, that of a young woman, first introduced as a maid working in the family textile shop, who becomes captivated by a young Napoleon (he initially wants to marry her for her dowry to finance his own military ambitions), is discarded by him, and, on the rebound, marries one of his generals to become queen of Sweden, is not particularly remarkable. Only when her path crosses Bonaparte's does the picture come to life. Yet Simmons, as always, fills her role beautifully with simplicity and charm. She was one of those young actresses of the '50s who could always be relied upon to bring her best to every part she played. Her long list of impressive credits (which includes Hamlet, The Robe, Guys and Dolls, Elmer Gantry and Spartacus) is enough to put today's one-hit-wonder Oscar winners to shame.The cast is rounded out by Michael Rennie as General Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte and Merle Oberon as the Empress Josephine. Both add dignity in their small, but decidedly secondary, roles.Despite the slow pacing, patient viewers will be rewarded with a terrific payoff in the film's final eight minutes. It is the touching, bittersweet scene during which Desiree and Napoleon meet for the last time and, while not historically accurate, it makes for great and moving drama. Napoleon has just recently escaped from Elba and is attempting to mobilize troops for one final effort to regain power in France. By now he is a humbled man, the confidence and swagger he so readily exhibited during his initial rise to prominence eroded. Yet, in retrospect, he is able to justify all his actions (In real life, he was a great administrator as well as a great military leader.), rightly or wrongly, and laments the betrayal of those he considered his closest friends. Though beaten, he still expects strict adherence to military protocol, as when he surrenders his sword ("Please don't hold it like an umbrella."). Desiree, though no longer enraptured by his charms, cannot help but feel a rekindling of admiration for him and a pang of regret.Marlon Brando reportedly once said that he took on the role of Napoleon for laughs. I very much doubt it. He is just too good. I think he was trying to get back at critics who refused to picture him as anyone other than Stanley Kowalski.

I watched this movie for the first time as a girl of 12 yrs. I loved it then and I love it now. I love the spunk of the character, Desiree Clary, so innocent, youthful, and fearless. The costumes were gorgeous. The story line has been described as sappy by some, but it provided a human, romantic overview of the era and of Napoleon, I enjoyed the movie and the actors and that's all that matters. Marlon Brando and Michael Rennie just added to the enjoyment. I vowed at the time that I first saw the movie, should I have a daughter I'd name her Desiree and I was blessed with a beautiful dark haired baby girl and her name is "Desiree". She just turned 22.

Filmed when CinemaScope's original ratio was still in use by Twentieth's cinematographers and with production values ladled on with an apparently generous budget (though no authentic European locations), "Desiree" is somewhat of a disappointment in many respects. Surprisingly Merle Oberon, as Josephine, remains in my memory as giving a touching (and, of course, glamorous) performance, but virtually everyone else (including Jean Simmons, one of my special favorites) fails to impress. Perhaps the emphasis on recounting the exploits of Napoleon Bonaparte from the perspective of one of his early, and unrequited, romantic conquests is the reason the whole enterprise seems like an undistinguished piece of overstuffed furniture...comfortable but hardly worthy of praise as an artisan's finest achievement. As an entertainment, typical of the Fifties, it was worth the price of admission when first released but I rather doubt that I'll join a chorus requesting Fox Home Entertainment to give this a DVD release in a widescreen format.