‘Napoleon’ Writer Prefers the Theatrical Version to 4+ Hour Director’s Cut

In late August we broke the news that Ridley Scott was working on a director’s cut of “Napoleon” that would clock in at over 4 hours. It obviously piqued our interest.

Scott later told Total Film that it would be made available after the film’s November release. He called his lengthier cut “Fantastic” …

Well, we’re waiting, Ridley. In all seriousness, I was told that this 4-hour cut would be made available in February or March, which is also when “Napoleon” is supposed to stream on Apple TV — viewers will be able to choose between the theatrical or director’s cut.

One person who much prefers the theatrically released version of “Napoleon” is its writer, David Scarpa. In an IndieWire interview, Scarpa admits that the 158 minute version we watched in theaters is the “better,” “tighter” and “concise” version:

I have seen what’s in the longer version. It works better, like most movies, in a tighter form. It gained a lot through the editing […] I don’t think there’s any way that in the format of a feature film that you can possibly tell the entirety of this story. You could easily do five seasons of a series on Napoleon, and still not get to the end of it, in terms of the material. So inevitably, you have to make choices. And this is a pretty concise version.

Produced and financed by Apple, Scott’s epic reunited the filmmaker with Joaquin Phoenix as the European conquering emperor. It received mixed reviews from critics, but I actually liked the subversive way in which Scott told his story. I imagine the 4-hour cut would be very different in terms of narrative tone.

Scott is no stranger to “Director’s Cuts.” We all know about the multiple “Blade Runner” versions that exist. That film became a sci-fi classic only years after its release, when audiences discovered Scott’s originally intended version.

Further, Scott’s Crusades epic, “Kingdom of Heaven,” originally released in the summer of 2005 to negative reviews, had a new version released on DVD, which had more than an hour's worth of deleted footage. The result? A 210-minute cut with character development, less plot holes and a much-improved story.