Waterloo (1970)

80% of users liked it
(1,765 ratings)

This lavishly costumed historical epic had an estimated $100 million price tag. Spectacularly photographed battle action contrasts with often plodding individual scenes that bog down the plot. Fearing his growing power, European monarchs force Napoleon Bonaparte (Rod Steiger) to abdicate as Emperor… More This lavishly costumed historical epic had an estimated $100 million price tag. Spectacularly photographed battle action contrasts with often plodding individual scenes that bog down the plot. Fearing his growing power, European monarchs force Napoleon Bonaparte (Rod Steiger) to abdicate as Emperor and retire to Elba, and the French are concerned they will be outnumbered by a force of combined armies from many countries in Europe. Napoleon no sooner says goodbye to his loyalist troops than he begins to rally his men and prepare for another takeover. King Louis XVIII (Orson Welles) sends Marshal Michel Ney (Dan O'Herlihy) and his men to counter Bonaparte, but upon seeing his old commander (and ally), Ney thrusts his sword to the ground and takes up arms with the deposed emperor. They all return to Paris by popular demand, defying the orders of Louis (who flees from the palace) and running the monarchy tout seul. Soon England, Austria, Prussia and Russia unite to try and stop the dictator. Wellington (Christopher Plummer) readies his troops near Waterloo, refuses to retreat anymore, and waits for Prussian Marshall Blucher (Sergei Zakhariadze) and his army to join up with the British as the only hope to stop the French juggernaut. Jack Hawkins and Michael Wilding portray key military commanders Picton and Ponosby, respectively. Napoleon and his troops cut into the Prussian and British forces dramatically, weakening their power, but three problems arise. First, Ney refuses to lead his segment of the troops onward; and second, Bonaparte's men are plagued by the wet weather, which causes the cannon brigade to become immobilized in mud (when Wellington strategically gives Bonaparte's troops the lower ground) rendering it ineffective until late in the day. And even more calamitously, Bonaparte - growing increasingly ill -- insists on leading his men from the rear, which causes the information to become outdated as soon as it gets to him. The Russian version of this film was nearly four hours long, while western audiences saw an edited version slightly over two hours long. Unfortunately, Waterloo bombed at the box office. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: G, 2 hr. 2 min.
Directed By: Sergei Bondarchuk
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure, Classics

In Theaters: Oct 26, 1970 Wide
On DVD: Oct 11, 2005

No Critic Reviews Found…

Featured Audience Ratings

Curtis L

Not bad for an old war movie. Funny and interesting.
The S

Massive battle scenes and a superb cast. The script often sounds a bit strangled as it leans heavily on attributed quotes. The film was a joint Soviet/Italian collaboration made in 1970 and it seems no coincidence that political and socialogical differences between Napoleon and his… More
Massive battle scenes and a superb cast. The script often sounds a bit strangled as it leans heavily on attributed quotes. The film was a joint Soviet/Italian collaboration made in 1970 and it seems no coincidence that political and socialogical differences between Napoleon and his adversaries are highlighted - the dictator Bonaparte is shown as very much a man of his people whereas his aristocratic opponents exhibit an air of superiority to and distain for their working class rank and file. All in all it's not a perfect film but it truly is an epic spectacle.

Cast

            Rod Steiger as Napoleon

            Christopher Plummer as Wellington

            Orson Welles as Louis XVIII

            Jack Hawkins as Gen. Thomas Picton

            Virginia McKenna as Duchess of Richmond

            Dan O'Herlihy as Marshal Michel Ney

            Rupert Davies as Gordon

            Philippe Forquet as Le Bedoyere

            Ian Ogilvy as De Lancey

            Michael Wilding as Ponsonby

            Sergei Zakariadze as Marshal Gebhard Blucher

            Terry Alexander as Uxbridge

            Andrea Checchi as Sauret

            Donal Donnelly as O'Connor

            Charles Millot as Grouchy

            Oleg Vidov as Tomlinson

            Charles Borromel as Mulholland

            Roger Green as Duncan

            Susan Wood as Sarah

            Armando Bottin as Legros

            Adrian Brine as Capt. Normyle

            Andre Eszterhazy as Duke of Richmond

            Gianni Garko as Gen. Drouot

            Ivo Garrani as Marshal Soult

            Willoughby Gray as Capt. Ramsay

            Richard Heffer as Capt. Mercer

            Orazio Orlando as Constant

            Giuliano Raffaelli as McDonald

            John Savident as Gen. Muffling

            Irina Skobtseva as Maria

            Jeffry Wickham as Sir John Colborne

            Peter Davies as Lord Richard Hay

            Franco Fantasia as Delessart

            Jean Louis as Oudinot

            Aldo Cecconi as Charles X

            Lanfranco Ceccarelli as Rumigus

            Vladimir Druzhnikov as Gerard

            Guidarino Guidi as Fat Man

            Volodia Levchenko as Drummer

            Vasily Livanov as Percy

            Rodolfo Lodi as Joseph Fouche

            Yevgeny Samoylov as Vicomte Pierre Cambronne
See full cast