“Napoleon” and others hit likability limits
For American audiences, there’s one clear deal-breaker.
We’ll accept antiheroes. We’ll let them rob banks, sell drugs, run gangs, spout biases, cheat on spouses. BUT they must be likable.
That comes to mind now, while pondering two current movies – “Napoleon” (shown here) and “Killers of the Flower Moon.” Here are epics, now in theaters (where they belong) before reaching Apple TV+. Each is by a master filmmaker, Ridley Scott and Martin Scorsese; each is oddly hard to like.
It also pops up while watching the original, British version of “Ghosts,” at 9 and 9:30 p.m. Thursdays on CBS. This is just like the American adaptation … except the characters are much less likable. That factor has been crucial, especially on TV: Read more…