NAPOLEON

NAPOLEON

Mama, I'm sorry that I didn't write

to you about this, but I thought

that it would be much better to tell

you myself.

Tap, tap, tap.

NAPOLEON

Mama, I know that when you meet her,

you will love her as much as I do.

Tap, tap, tap.

NOTE

The following excerpts, from Napoleon's letters to

Josephine will be read over the following scenes, which

follow after the text of the letters. The visual will

show Josephine's affair with Hippolyte Charles, and

Napoleon's life in camp and on the march. The letters are

presented uninterrupted by the scene descriptions, to

preserve there flow.

NAPOLEON (V.O.)

My dearest Josephine, every moment

increases the distance between us,

and with every moment that passes I

feel myself less able to endure the

separation. You are the eternal

object of my thoughts, and my

imagination exhausts itself

wondering what you are doing.

* * *

By what magic have you captivated

all my faculties, concentrated in

yourself all my existence? It is a

kind of death, my darling, since

there is no survival for me except

in you.

* * *

I ask of you neither eternal love

nor fidelity, but only truth, utter

honesty. The day upon which you

should say "I love you less," would

be the last day of my love -- or the

last day of my life. And if I

should not die of sorrow, then, my

heart, maimed for life, would never

again trust itself to respond to any

sentiments of tenderness or rapture.

* * *

You let many days go without writing

to me. What, then, are you doing?

* * *

When you write, dearest, assure me

that you realize that I love you

with a love that is beyond the

limits of imagination. That you,

you alone, and all of you, as I see

you, as you are -- only you can

please me, absorb the faculties of

my soul; that there is no corner of

my heart into which you do not see,

no thought of mine which is not

subordinate to you. That my arms,

my strength, my mind are all yours.

That my soul lives in your body.

That the world is beautiful only

because you inhabit it.

* * *

No letters from you -- only once

every four days do I receive one,

whereas if you loved me you would

write me twice a day. Absence

relieves minor attachments but it

intensifies love. A kiss upon your

mouth, upon your heart, everywhere.

There is no one else, no one but me,

is there?

* * *

Your letter is brief, sad and

written in a trembling hand. What

is wrong with you, my darling?

* * *

My misfortune is to have known you

so little; yours, to have judged me

by the men you have known, who

surrounded you.

* * *

You have inspired in me a limitless

passion, and an intoxication that is

degrading. Josephine, you have made

me wretched. But I have never

believed in happiness. Is life

really worth making such a fuss?

* * *

Four hours ago, there came that

scrap of a letter to break the news

that you are not coming, that you

are ill, that there are three

doctors in attendance, that you

cannot write yourself. My life is

now a perpetual nightmare. A fatal

premonition stops me from breathing.

I am ill of your illness, burning

with your fever.

* * *

In a month I have received only two

notes of three lines each. Good

God, tell me how you know so well

how to inspire love in other's

hearts, without feeling it in your

own? Make mock of me, stay on in

Paris, take lovers, let all the

world know it, never write to me --

and then? And then, I shall love

you ten times more than I did

before!

* * *

But don't go on telling me that you

are ill; don't go on trying to

justify your behavior. You are

forgiven.

* * *

Your letters are as cold as

friendship. What is left for you to

do to make me more wretched? Stop

loving me? That's already done.

Hate me? Perhaps I should hope for

that. Hatred, at least, is not

humiliating. But, oh, indifference

-- the pulse of marble, the vacant

glance, the distracted air.

NOTE

Now the following scenes relate to the above.

INT. HQ TENT - NIGHT

Napoleon, seated at a table in his HQ tent late at night

writing a letter by candlelight.

INT. JOSEPHINE'S BEDROOM - DAY

It is a bright, sunny morning in Josephine's bedroom at

Rue de Chanterine. There is a letter from Napoleon

leaning against the teapot on her breakfast tray. She

picks up the envelope, sees who it is from, puts it down,

pours her tea, adds milk and sugar, stirs it carefully,

sighs, looks outside at the tall trees rustling in the

breeze, then idly picks up the letter and opens it.

INSERT

A close shot of Napoleon's hand, writing on his official

stationary which has printed, under a large illustration

symbolizing liberty and equality, "Headquarters of the

Commander in Chief, Army of Italy."

INT. JOSEPHINE'S SALON - DAY

General Le Clerc presents his aide, Captain Hippolyte

Charles.

GENERAL LE CLERC

I should like you to meet my aide-

de-camp, Captain Hippolyte Charles

-- Madame Bonaparte.

CAPTAIN CHARLES

I am delighted to meet you, Madame

Bonaparte.

JOSEPHINE

Thank you, Captain. Won't you both

please sit down?

Love at first sight.

GENERAL LE CLERC

Thank you very much, Madame

Bonaparte. I have come at the

instruction of General Bonaparte to

bring this letter from his mother in

Nice.

INT. TENT - NIGHT

Napoleon lying awake in the early hours of the morning, in

his camp bed.

EXT. JOSEPHINE'S GARDEN - NIGHT

Moonlight. Josephine and Charles walk slowly in the

garden. They stop. She is still. He touches his lips to

her shoulders and neck. She slowly turns, looks into his

eyes and kisses him, long and languorously.

EXT. CAMPFIRE - DAY

Napoleon standing at a camp fire in the rain, staring

vacantly into the flames.

INT. JOSEPHINE'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Josephine and Charles making love in her mirrored bedroom

at the Rue de Chanterine. Maximum erotica.

TITLE: THE FIRST ITALIAN CAMPAIGN

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

A spectacular shot of the French army on the march --

about 5,000 men. Music.

NAPOLEON (V.O.)

Soldiers, you are half-naked and

badly clothed. The authorities find

much fault with you and yet can give

nothing. Your patience, your

courage are admirable but you are

not getting any fame. I will lead

you into the must fruitful plains in

the world -- rich provinces and

great cities shall be your

possessions, and then you will have

wealth, honor and fame in full

measure.

ANIMATED MAP

Start of the 1st Italian campaign.

NARRATOR

With the Italian campaign, Napoleon

steps onto the stage as a figure of

European importance. A dozen

victories in as many months would be

announced in dramatic and highly

colored bulletins. The battles of

the revolution had been so far

mainly defensive. Now, there was

revealed a new kind of offensive

warfare such as had not been seen in

Europe for centuries.

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

Army on the march -- a military band playing -- about 500

men.

NOTE

The following narration will be read over the following

scenes.

NARRATOR

Napoleon now introduced a new era of

wars of maneuver. Everything would

be sacrificed to mobility. The

complicated battle formations of the

18th century would be abandoned, and

the army freed from clumsy baggage

trains. War would be made to feed

on war. The armies opposing him

were still committed to the rigid

ideas of the previous era, and their

soldiers were treated as automatons.

As they could not be trusted to

forage for themselves without

deserting, such armies were slowed

down by their supply trains. The

revolution, on the other hand, had

produced an army of intelligent

citizens, which could move fast by

living off the country, and in which

courage and initiative were rewarded

by promotion.

EXT. ITALIAN VILLAGE - DAY

A small village in Italy. The advance guard cavalry

screen, about 100 troopers, gallop through the town and

form a line preventing anyone from leaving in the

direction of the enemy.

MAJOR

Captain, take 20 men. Assemble all

the inhabitants on the main street,

and collect all mail and newspapers.

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

Horse drawn artillery on the march.

EXT. ITALIAN FARM - DAY

A party of 20 French infantry removing livestock and food

in a cart from a farmhouse. The farmer and his family

look on in quiet despair.

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

A section on the march -- boy drummers, in their early

teens.

EXT. ITALIAN STREAM - DAY

A big, exciting shot of about 200 cavalry crossing the

stream.

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

On the march -- an infantryman has a pet dog on a lead.

EXT. ITALIAN ROAD - DAY

On the march -- a soldier carries a parrot in a cage.

EXT. ITALIAN HILL - DAY

Napoleon, on a horse, surrounded by his aides, studying a

large map.

FADE OUT.

FADE IN:

EXT. ITALIAN BATTLEFIELD - DAY

A long shot of the opposing French and Austrian armies

facing each other across the battlefield.

NAPOLEON (V.O.)

There is no man more cautious than I

am when planning a campaign. I

exaggerate all the dangers, and all

the disasters that might occur. I

look quite serene to my staff, but I

am like a woman in labor. Once I

have made up my mind, everything is

forgotten, except what leads to

success.

A cloud of sharp-shooters, some mounted, some on foot,

advance to harass the enemy, escaping from his superior

numbers, by their mobility, and from his cannon by their

dispersal.

Napoleon studies this exchange of fire to better

understand the enemy's position. Surrounded by his

entourage, he is on a wooded platform constructed in the

top branches of a large tree, overlooking the battlefield.

NAPOLEON (V.O.)

The art of war is a simple art.

Everything is in the execution.

There is nothing vague in it. It is

all common sense. Theory does not

enter into it. The simplest moves

are always the best.

When the French skirmishers finally reveal a chink in the

enemy position, it becomes a focal point for the main

effort.

Horse artillery are sent forward, on the gallop, to open

fire with canister at close range.

The main attacking force of infantry are then sent

forward, moving up in columns and lines.

The cavalry trots beside them, in the gaps, to make their

presence felt where it will be best used.

Drummers and bands fill the air with stirring music.

Officers march smartly alongside their men.

The precision of these attacking maneuvers is very

important because the sight of the slow moving, perfectly

aligned mass of infantry is more frightening and

discouraging to the defender than a wild bayonet charge.

When the two main forces are about 100 yards apart, the

Commanding Officer in the field starts the chant "Hymn to

Victory" and places his hat, with its large tricolored

cockade, on the point of his sword so that is can be seen

by all of his troops.

When the distance narrows to about 50 yards, the defending

Austrians fire their first volleys -- first row, second

row, third row.

The French fall everywhere, but the remainder fill in the

formation and keep moving in regular step.

This is the crucial point of the battle. The defenders

now have to decide whether they are going to run or face

the attackers' volley and subsequent bayonet charge.

There is no time for the defenders to reload.

Now the French are 20 yards away and still hold their

fire, trained to do this because their psychological

advantage is lost once they have discharged their muskets.

They want the defenders to break and run.

Now panic has begun to set in and to dislodge the

defending Austrian troops. They start to give way.

The French relentlessly move forward.

The Austrian movements at the rear become a stampede.

The officers signal with their swords, and the drummers

beat the charge. The sky rings with a thousand battle

cries.

The cavalry dashes forward and hacks down the fleeing

Austrian infantry, who are virtually helpless against the

cavalry out in the open.

The French have won the day, and their infantry fires

their first volley at the backs of the fleeing Austrian

troops.

EXT. MILAN STREET - DAY

The triumphal entrance of the French army into Milan.

Wildly enthusiastic crowds, floral arches, tricolors

everywhere, glittering military bands, flags, columns upon

columns of French troops, the smart clattering of the

cavalry.

Napoleon, on horseback, flanked by his staff and aides,

his eyes shining, his expression transfixed, as if in a

mystical reverie.

NARRATOR

Napoleon would soon arouse the

resentment of the Directory in

Paris, exceeding his authority,

making political decisions and

treaties like a Roman Conqueror,

enlarging his role to ruler of

Italy. Only his tremendous success

and ever increasing popularity

prevented the Directory from

replacing him.

NAPOLEON (V.O.)

From that moment on, I foresaw what

I might be. Already I felt the

earth flee beneath me, as if I were

being carried away up to the sky.

INT. BEDROOM MILAN PALACE - DAY

Napoleon and Josephine are making love. Sunlight falling

on their bodies.

JOSEPHINE (V.O.)

My dear Therese, the journey here to

Milan was the most difficult and

uncomfortable imaginable -- I am

bored to death. My husband doesn't

love me, he worships me. I fear he

will go mad with love. Worse than

that, I fear for my poor Hippolyte.

We may have been indiscreet on the

journey, and I think Joseph and

Junot suspect something.

INT. OFFICE MILAN PALACE - DAY

The orderly announces Captain Hippolyte Charles. He is

24, handsome, short and slight, very much in stature like

Napoleon, and has a hairdresser's elegance.

His behavior is absolutely correct during this interview,

and one could never infer any guilt on his part.

NAPOLEON

Come in, Captain Charles.

Charles approaches the table and salutes smartly.

NAPOLEON

I believe you are acquainted with my

brother, Joseph Bonaparte, and my

aide, Major Junot.

CHARLES

Yes, sir, I had the honor of meeting

them on the trip from Paris.

They nod, politely.

NAPOLEON

Captain Charles, I believe you are

one of General Le Clerc's aides-de-

camp.

CHARLES

Yes, sir, I am.

NAPOLEON

Was it he who assigned you to

command the escort which accompanied

Madame Bonaparte's coach?

CHARLES

Yes, sir.

There is a pause. Napoleon studies Charles.

NAPOLEON

Was the trip normal in every

respect?

CHARLES

Yes, sir.

NAPOLEON

Did any difficulties of any kind

arise during the trip?

CHARLES

No, sir, none at all.

Pause.

NAPOLEON

Then, you have my thanks, Captain

Charles, for safely escorting Madame

Bonaparte to Milan, and you may

consider your assignment completed.

CHARLES

Thank you, sir.

NAPOLEON

You will return to Paris tomorrow

and you will carry my compliments

and thanks to General Le Clerc for

assigning such an excellent officer

to carry out a responsibility which

has meant so much to myself and to

Madame Bonaparte.

CHARLES

Thank you, sir. I will do that.

NAPOLEON

You may go, Captain Charles.

Charles salutes and leaves. Napoleon sits and stares at

his desk for several seconds, then he produces a letter

from his pocket and hands it to Joseph.

NAPOLEON

I would like both of you to read

this. Please read it aloud.

JOSEPH

(reading aloud)

To Citizen General Bonaparte from

one who does not wish to see him

dishonored by his wife. You should

know, Citizen General, that your

wife has taken a lover, one Captain

Hippolyte Charles... undated and

unsigned.

Joseph shakes his head. He hands it to Junot, who reads

it, and hands it back, looking to Joseph to speak first.

NAPOLEON

Naturally, one does not take much

stock in such a piece of filth but,

on the other hand, it is not the

sort of thing one can simply ignore.

What do you think, Joseph?

JOSEPH

No...

NAPOLEON

Junot?

JUNOT

(thoughtfully)

No, one cannot simply ignore it.

NAPOLEON

I am afraid, then, I have to ask you

both, Joseph as my brother, and

Junot as my good friend, whether or

not you know anything about this, or

whether you saw anything at all

during the trip which might make you

suspect some truth to it.

Joseph thinks for a moment and slowly shakes his head.

JOSEPH

No... nothing at all.

NAPOLEON

Not even the slightest hint of

something?

JOSEPH

No -- Captain Charles commanded the

cavalry escort, and rode outside the

carriage. In the evenings, he

always ate at another table. They

hardly ever spoke to each other.

NAPOLEON

You would tell me, Joseph, wouldn't

you?

JOSEPH

Yes, of course, I would. You know I

am not one of your wife's greatest

admirers, but I certainly know

nothing about this.

NAPOLEON

And you, Junot?

JUNOT

(shaking his head)

No... No, I don't know anything

about it either. Not a thing.

Pause.

NAPOLEON

Well, thank you both. As I said, I

shall regard this as a piece of

malevolence from someone who does

not wish well to myself or

Josephine. Naturally, I shall trust

to your discretion to say nothing

about this.

FADE OUT.

FADE IN:

TITLE: EGYPT

EXT. SPHINX - DAY

Napoleon, Eugene, Junot, Marmont and Murat, accompanied by

a large party of scientists, stand before the Sphinx.

NARRATOR

On July 2, 1798, Napoleon arrived in

Egypt with an army of 40,000 men,

and a romantic dream of conquest,

following Alexander's march into

India. The Directory had been quick

to approve his plan for attacking

England, indirectly, through their

Eastern Empire, rather than by

invasion of Britain, and they

breathed a sigh of relief to have

their unemployed conqueror off the

doorstep.

EXT. PYRAMID - DAY

Napoleon and the scientists inspect a mummy, brought out

into the sunlight, after thousands of years. A mood of

somber reflection pervades the scene.

NARRATOR

There was an air of grandiose

fantasy about the expedition.

Napoleon took along a hundred and

fifty distinguished scientists,

intellectuals and artists equipped

with libraries and scientific

instruments. They would found the

Institute of Egypt, do the

preliminary survey work for the Suez

canal, and unlock the key to

hieroglyphic writing.

EXT. HIEROGLYPHIC WALL OF TOMB - DAY

A young drummer boy scribbles "Long Live the Republic" on

the face of some hieroglyphic writing. Several other

soldiers closely scrutinize the ancient writing.

EXT. DESERT - DAY

We are inside of a French division square, defending

itself against an attack of mameluke cavalry. Each side

of the square is formed of three ranks of men, and

artillery is placed at the corners.

The inside of the square is about the size of a football

field, and is virtually empty, except for a small group of

officers surrounding Napoleon, and a fairly large group of

terrified scientists and intellectuals, dressed in heavy

European clothes, mounted on donkeys and camels, and

carrying umbrellas.

Outside the square, the shrieking mamelukes recklessly

charge, and are slaughtered by the disciplined and

accurate wall of French muskets.

The scene will be shot only from inside the square, and

from this vantage point, all we can see, over the heads of

the defending French troops and clouds of dust, are the

tops of the mamelukes.

Napoleon, pleased with the way things are going, rides

over to the groups of scientists, to cheer them up. He

has to shout to be heard.

NAPOLEON

(shouting)

Good afternoon, gentlemen. I hope

you are enjoying this unusual

spectacle. One cannot see this in

Paris for any price.