View source for Waterloo (1970 film)

{{short description|1970 film}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2009}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Waterloo
| image          = Waterloo 1970 poster.jpg
| caption        = Italian theatrical poster
| director       = [[Sergei Bondarchuk]]
| producer       = [[Dino De Laurentiis]]
| studio         = {{plainlist|
*[[Mosfilm]]
*[[Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica]]
}}
| screenplay     = {{plainlist|
*H. A. L. Craig
*Sergei Bondarchuk
*Vittorio Bonicelli
*[[Mario Soldati]]<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-mario-soldati-1101653.html|title=Obituary: Mario Soldati|date=1999-06-22|work=[[The Independent]]|access-date=2018-01-26|language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne_gen_cpersonne=5807.html|title=Mario Soldati|last=AlloCine|website=AlloCiné|access-date=2018-01-26}}</ref>
}}
| story          = H. A. L. Craig
| starring       = {{plainlist|
*[[Rod Steiger]]
*[[Christopher Plummer]]
*[[Orson Welles]]
*[[Jack Hawkins]]
*[[Virginia McKenna]]
*[[Dan O'Herlihy]]
}}
| music          = {{plainlist|
*[[Nino Rota]]
*[[Wilfred Josephs]]
}}
| cinematography = [[Armando Nannuzzi]]
| editing        = [[Richard C. Meyer]]
| distributor    = {{plainlist|
*[[Paramount Pictures]] (North America, Latin America and Spain)
*Euro International Films (Italy)
*Mosfilm (Soviet Union)
*[[Columbia Pictures]] (International)
}}
| released       = {{Film date|1970|10|26|df=y}}
| runtime        = 128 minutes
| country        = {{ubl|Italy|Soviet Union}}
| language       = English
| budget         = £12 million<ref name="obs">{{cite news|newspaper=The Observer
|date=25 October 1970|page= 4|title='Shadows on the wall'}}</ref> ($25 million<ref name="italy"/>)
}}
'''''Waterloo''''' (''{{langx|ru|Ватерлоо}}'') is a 1970 English-language [[Epic film|epic]] [[historical]] [[drama film]] about the [[Battle of Waterloo]], the decisive battle of the [[Napoleonic Wars]]. A [[co-production (media)|co-production]] between [[Italy]] and the [[Soviet Union]], it was directed by [[Sergei Bondarchuk]] and produced by [[Dino De Laurentiis]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Waterloo |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/waterloo-1971 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203030118/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/waterloo-1971 |archive-date=2024-12-03 |access-date=2018-01-26 |website=[[RogerEbert.com]]}}</ref> It stars [[Rod Steiger]] as [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] and [[Christopher Plummer]] as the [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington|Duke of Wellington]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Greenspun |first=Roger |date=1971-04-01 |title=Screen: A Battle Fought Strictly for the Camera:Bondarchuk Directs Craig's 'Waterloo' Rod Steiger Portrays Ill-Fated Napoleon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1971/04/01/archives/screen-a-battle-fought-strictly-for-the-camerabondarchuk-directs.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224052543/https://www.nytimes.com/1971/04/01/archives/screen-a-battle-fought-strictly-for-the-camerabondarchuk-directs.html |archive-date=2021-02-24 |access-date=2018-01-26 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Other stars include [[Jack Hawkins]] as General Sir [[Thomas Picton]], [[Virginia McKenna]] as the [[Charlotte Lennox, Duchess of Richmond|Duchess of Richmond]], [[Dan O'Herlihy]] as Marshal [[Michel Ney|Ney]], and [[Orson Welles]] as [[Louis XVIII]] of France. The film is centered not just on the Battle of Waterloo, but also on the days that led to the campaign known as the [[Hundred Days]]''.''<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Pitogo |first=Heziel |date=2015-06-18 |title=Waterloo: The Movie That Used 15,000 Real Soldiers as Extras |url=https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/waterloo-the-movie-that-used-15000-real-soldiers-as-extras.html |access-date=2025-02-25 |website=War History Online}}</ref>

Steiger and Plummer often narrate sections in voice-over, presenting thoughts of Napoleon and Wellington.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Waterloo (1971) |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/54165 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250125140153/https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/54165 |archive-date=2025-01-25 |access-date=2021-07-31 |website=AFI Catalog}}</ref> The film takes a largely neutral stance and portrays many individual leaders and soldiers on each side, rather than simply focusing on Wellington and Napoleon. It creates a generally accurate chronology of the events of the battle, the extreme heroism on each side, and the loss of life suffered by all the participating armies.

The film is most famous for its lavish battle scenes, shot on-location in [[Uzhhorod]], [[Ukraine]]. Its 15,000 authentically dressed [[extra (acting)|extra]]s, recreating battle scenes with true numbers and without special effects, remain the largest body of costumed extras in any film.<ref name=":0" /> Despite mixed critical reviews, it won several awards, including [[British Academy Film Awards|BAFTAs]] for [[BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design|Best Costume Design]] and [[BAFTA Award for Best Art Direction|Best Art Direction]], and the 1971 [[David di Donatello for Best Film]].

==Plot==
In the aftermath of the [[Campaign in north-east France (1814)|1814 campaign]], French Emperor [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] is forced to abdicate at the demand of his [[Marshal of the Empire|marshals]]. Exiled to [[Elba]] with 1,000 men, Napoleon escapes after a year and once more rallies the French to his side. King [[Louis XVIII]] flees, and the [[Hundred Days|European powers declare war once again]]. In [[Brussels]] during the [[Duchess of Richmond's ball]], the [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington|Duke of Wellington]] is warned of Napoleon's march into [[Belgium]], tactically driving a wedge between the British and Prussian armies. Wellington, in consulting with his staff, elects to halt Napoleon at [[Waterloo, Belgium|Waterloo]].

At [[Battle of Quatre-Bras|Quatre-Bras]], Marshal [[Michel Ney|Ney]] fights the British to a draw, whereas Napoleon defeats the Prussians at [[Battle of Ligny|Ligny]]. Ney rides to Napoleon to deliver his report, but in doing so has allowed Wellington to withdraw his still intact forces. Napoleon commands [[Emmanuel de Grouchy, marquis de Grouchy|Grouchy]] to lead 30,000 men against the Prussians to prevent their rejoining the British, whilst Napoleon will command his remaining troops against Wellington.

On 18 June 1815, the [[Battle of Waterloo]] commences with initial cannon fire from the French. Napoleon launches teasing attacks against Wellington's flanks at [[Hougoumont]] and [[La Haye Sainte]], though Wellington refuses to divert his main force. General [[Thomas Picton|Picton]] is sent to plug a gap when a Dutch brigade is routed, and though successful he is killed in doing so. [[William Ponsonby (British Army officer)|Ponsonby]] also leads a cavalry charge against the French cannon but becomes isolated from the main allied force and is cut down by French lancers.

Troops spotted emerging from the east are worryingly assumed to be Grouchy by Wellington, and [[Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher|Blücher]] to Napoleon. Suffering from stomach pain, Napoleon momentarily withdraws and leaves Ney in command. Simultaneously, the order is given to allied troops to retire 100 paces, which Ney incorrectly interprets as a withdrawal.

Ney leads a cavalry charge against the British but is repelled with casualties by [[infantry square]]s. Despite this, the battle still wages much in Napoleon's favour; La Haye Sainte falls to the French, and Napoleon ultimately decides to send the [[Imperial Guard (Napoleon I)|Imperial Guard]] to deliver the decisive blow.

During their advance, [[Peregrine Maitland|Maitland's]] [[Grenadier Guards|1st Foot Guards]], who were lying in tall grass, deliver a devastating point-blank volley against the Imperial Guard, repulsing them with heavy casualties. At the same time, Blücher arrives in the field. For the first time in its history the Imperial Guard breaks, and the battle is won by the Allied forces.

That evening after the battle, Wellington is seen observing the thousands of casualties on the field. Napoleon, having survived the battle, is urged to flee at the pleas of his marshals.

==Music==
A large part of the music was composed by Nino Rota. However, he also incorporated a lot of music from that time. For example, he included "La Victoire est à Nous" into "Onto Brussels" which is played during the old guard advance.

Another example is "The Girl I Left Behind Me" used in "The Old Guard is Broken!".

==Cast==
===The French and allies===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Rod Steiger]] as Emperor [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon I]]
* [[Dan O'Herlihy]] as Marshal [[Michel Ney]]
* [[Philippe Forquet]] as Brigadier-General [[Charles de la Bédoyère]]
* [[Gianni Garko]] as Major-General [[Antoine Drouot]]
* [[Ivo Garrani]] as Marshal [[Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult]]
* [[Charles Millot]] as Marshal [[Emmanuel de Grouchy, Marquis de Grouchy]]
*[[Yevgeny Samoylov]] as Brigadier-General [[Pierre Cambronne]]
*[[Vladimir Druzhnikov]] as Général de Division [[Étienne Maurice Gérard]]
* [[Andrea Checchi]] as [[Old Guard (France)|Old Guardsman]]
* [[Orazio Orlando]] as [[Louis Constant Wairy|Constant]]
* [[Gennadi Yudin]] as Grenadier Chactas
* Armando Bottin as Sous-Lieutenant Legros
* Rodolfo Lodi as [[Joseph Fouché]]
* Jean Louis as Marshal [[Nicolas Oudinot]]
* Boris Molchanov as Général de Division [[Henri Gatien Bertrand]]
* Lev Polyakov as Général de Division [[François Étienne de Kellermann]]
* Giorgio Sciolette as Marshal [[Louis-Alexandre Berthier]]
* Sergio Testori as Lieutenant-General [[Marcellin Marbot]]
* Yan Yanakiyev as Dr. [[Dominique Jean Larrey]]
* [[Rostislav Yankovsky]] as [[Charles Joseph, comte de Flahaut|Charles Joseph de Flahaut]]
{{div col end}}

===The British and allies===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
*[[Christopher Plummer]] as Field Marshal [[Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington]]
*[[Orson Welles]] as King [[Louis XVIII]] of France
*[[Jack Hawkins]] as Lieutenant-General Sir [[Thomas Picton]] (voice dubbed by [[Robert Rietti]], as Hawkins had lost his voice to throat cancer)<ref>{{cite AV media|date=2007|title=Robert Rietti: The Man of a Thousand Voices|type=short|people=Wilson, Daniel (director)}}</ref>
*[[Virginia McKenna]] as [[Charlotte Lennox, Duchess of Richmond]]
*[[Rupert Davies]] as Colonel [[Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon]]
*[[Ian Ogilvy]] as Colonel Sir [[William Howe De Lancey]]
*[[Michael Wilding]] as Major-General The Honourable Sir [[William Ponsonby (British Army officer)|William Ponsonby]]
*[[Sergo Zakariadze]] as Field Marshal [[Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher|Gebhard von Blücher]], Fürst von Wahlstatt
*[[Terence Alexander]] as Lieutenant-General [[Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey|Henry Paget, 2nd Earl of Uxbridge]]
*[[Donal Donnelly]] as Corporal O'Connor
*[[Oleg Vidov]] as Tomlinson
*Charles Borromel as Mulholland
*Peter Davies as Ensign [[James Hay, Lord Hay]]
*[[Veronica De Laurentiis]] as [[Magdalene De Lancey]]
*[[Willoughby Gray]] as Major [[William Norman Ramsay|William Ramsay]]
*Roger Green as Duncan
*[[Richard Heffer]] as Captain [[Cavalié Mercer]]
*[[John Savident]] as Major-General [[Karl Freiherr von Müffling]]
*[[Jeffry Wickham]] as Colonel Sir [[John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton|John Colborne]]
*Susan Wood as Lady Sarah Lennox
*Andrea Esterhazy as [[Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond]]
*Karl Lyepinsk as Generalfeldmarschall [[August Neidhardt von Gneisenau]]
{{div col end}}

==Production==
Italian producer De Laurentiis first announced the film in October 1965, saying it would be made the following year. [[John Huston]] was set to direct.<ref>'Waterloo' Set Next Year Martin, Betty. ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' 7 Oct 1965: D16.</ref>  With John Huston on board, De Laurentiis attempted to secure international co-production deals in Eastern Europe, but negotiations did not succeed.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Waterloo production plans reported |url=https://archive.org/details/variety-1967-08/page/n9/mode/2up |publisher=Variety |date=1967-08-23 |access-date=2025-11-07}}</ref>

It was not until De Laurentiis began talks with the Soviets in the late 1960s, that he found the financing he was looking for. He reached an agreement with [[Mosfilm]], in which final costs were more than £12 million (GBP) (equivalent to about U.S. $38.3 million in 1970), making it one of the most expensive movies made, for its time.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Waterloo#tab=summary|title=Waterloo (1970) - Financial Information|work=The Numbers|access-date=2018-01-26}}</ref>  The movie was one of several co-productions between Italy and Russia around this time. Others include [[The Red Tent (film)|''The Red Tent'']], ''[[Sunflower (1970 film)|Sunflower]]'' and ''Dubrovsky'' (the latter was never made).<ref name="italy">{{cite news|title=Italian Filmmakers invading Russia|newspaper=The San Francisco Examiner|date=15 January 1969|page= 29|first=Anthony C.|last=Collings}}</ref> Additional financing also came from [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] and [[Columbia Pictures|Columbia]].<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The San Francisco Examiner|date=14 March 1969|page= 31|title=US, Russia and Italy Ally to Film Waterloo}}</ref>
Had the movie been filmed in the West, it might have cost up to three times as much. Mosfilm contributed more than £4 million of the costs, and nearly 17,000 soldiers of the [[Soviet Army]], including a full brigade of Soviet cavalry, and a host of engineers and labourers to prepare the battlefield in the rolling farmland outside [[Uzhhorod]], [[Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic|Ukrainian SSR]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.markpack.org.uk/110409/waterloo-epic-1970-movie/|title=Waterloo: the epic 1970 movie|date=2015-01-07|work=Mark Pack|access-date=2018-01-26|language=en-GB|archive-date=27 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127084206/https://www.markpack.org.uk/110409/waterloo-epic-1970-movie/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/sep/10/waterloo-orson-welles-reel-history|title=Waterloo: My my, Napoleon did surrender rather like this|last=Tunzelmann|first=Alex von|date=2009-09-10|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-01-26}}</ref> The Italians reportedly provided eight million pounds.<ref name="obs"/>

===Director and cast===
John Huston having left the project by this point, this relationship also brought the celebrated Russian director on board, Bondarchuk, fresh off his internationally celebrated production of a four-hour version of [[War and Peace (1965 film)|''War and Peace'']], which won Best Foreign Film at the 1970 Oscars.

In December 1968, Steiger had been cast as Napoleon, and Bondarchuk visited London to talk to actors about playing the Duke of Wellington. "I see Wellington as a typical Englishman," said the director, adding "I see Napoleon as Tolstoy treated him."<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The Pittsburgh Press|date=19 December 1968|page= 38|title=Director to film Waterloo}}</ref>

The cast consisted of Russian, Italian, Irish, American, Canadian and British actors, who were all required to speak their lines in English.{{cn|date=October 2025}}

Several historical characters listed in the credits do not actually appear in the film, they are said to have been in scenes cut before release.<ref>Evans, Alun (2000) ''Brassey's Guide to War Films'' Potomac Books Inc.</ref>

===Location===
Filming took place in Rome and the Ukrainian SSR throughout 1969. 
To recreate the battlefield "authentically", the Soviets bulldozed away two hills, laid five miles of roads, transplanted 5,000 trees, sowed fields of rye, barley and wildflowers and reconstructed four historic buildings. To create the mud, more than six miles of underground irrigation piping was specially laid. Most of the battle scenes were filmed using five [[Panavision]] cameras simultaneously – from ground level, from 100-foot towers, from a helicopter, and from an overhead railway built right across the location.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://adventuresinhistoryland.com/tag/making-of-waterloo-1970/|title=making of Waterloo 1970 {{!}} Adventures In Historyland|website=adventuresinhistoryland.com|date=30 June 2017 |language=en|access-date=2018-01-26}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{Cite news |last=Plunkett |first=Luke |title=Screw CGI, This War Movie Used 15,000 Real Soldiers |url=https://kotaku.com/screw-cgi-this-war-movie-used-15-000-real-soldiers-1692057951 |access-date=2018-01-26 |work=Kotaku |language=en-US}}</ref> The battle reportedly cost $5 million of the $25 million budget.<ref name="italy"/> It was the largest battlefield ever used for a film.<ref name="los">{{cite news|newspaper=The Los Angeles Times Part 2|date=26 July 1969|title=Dino de Laurentiis Discovers his 'Waterloo'|pages=10, 34 }}</ref>

However, the authentic nature of the topography is questionable and has more to do with dramatic panoramic film shots rather than topographical accuracy: in reality, the Waterloo site is laid out as a series of low hillocks with few opportunities for long views. In particular, [[La Haye Sainte]] is almost invisible from the north and west, sitting in a small south-facing hollow.{{cn|date=October 2025}}

Actual filming was accomplished over 28 weeks, which included 16 days of delay (principally due to bad weather). Many of the battle scenes were filmed in the summer of 1969 in often sweltering heat. In addition to the battlefield in Ukraine, filming also took place on location in the [[Royal Palace of Caserta]], Italy, while interior scenes were filmed on the large De Laurentiis Studios lot in Rome. The battle sequences of the film included about 15,000 Soviet foot soldiers and 2,000 cavalrymen as extras and 50 circus stunt riders were used to perform the dangerous horse falls. It has been joked that Sergei Bondarchuk was in command of the seventh-largest army in the world.<ref>{{citation |last=Corrigan |first=Major J.G.H. |url=http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/t-z/waterloo.html |title=Waterloo (review) |publisher=period props were built by E. Rancati and hundreds of pairs of footwear were supplied by [[L.C.P. di Pompei|Pompei]]. [[Channel 4]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327224105/http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/t-z/waterloo.html |archive-date=27 March 2009}}</ref>

Months before the cameras started filming, the 17,000 soldiers began training to learn drill and battle formations, as well as the use of sabres, bayonets and handling cannons. A selected 2,000 additional men were also taught to load and fire muskets. This army lived in a large encampment next to the battlefield. Each day after breakfast, they marched to a large wardrobe building, donned their French, British or Prussian uniforms and fifteen minutes later were in position.{{cn|date=October 2025}}

The soldiers were commanded by officers who took orders from director Sergei Bondarchuk via walkie-talkie. To assist in the direction of this huge, multi-national undertaking, the Soviet director had four interpreters permanently at his side: one each for [[English language|English]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[French language|French]] and [[Serbo-Croatian]].

==Reception==
===Box office===
It was the fifth most popular "reserve ticket" movie at the British box office in 1971.<ref>Peter Waymark. "Richard Burton top draw in British cinemas". ''[[The Times]]'' [London, England] 30 Dec. 1971: 2. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 11 July 2012.</ref> Associate producer Tom Carlie said "the film has been well received in Europe especially England. The French are less enthusiastic, but after all they lost at Waterloo."<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=The San Francisco Examiner|date=24 March 1971|page= 34|title=How Waterloo Ended up in Rassia}}</ref>

However, it failed to recoup its cost.  The meagre box office results of ''Waterloo'' led to the cancellation of [[Stanley Kubrick]]'s [[Stanley Kubrick's unrealized projects#Napoleon|planned film biography of Napoleon]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stanley Kubrick's 'Napoleon': A Lot of Work, Very Little Actual Movie|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/stanley-kubricks-napoleon-a-lot-of-work-very-little-actual-movie/|access-date=2021-06-02|website=Vice.com|date=10 February 2010 |language=en}}</ref>

After its release, the film gained popularity and received numerous positive reviews for its battle depiction.  [[New Zealand]] film director [[Peter Jackson]] said that the film inspired his adaptations of ''[[The Lord of the Rings (film series)|The Lord of the Rings]]'' and ''[[The Hobbit (film series)|The Hobbit]]''.<ref>"Peter Jackson Inspiration 2". Retrieved 2 February 2013 – via Youtube.</ref>

===Critical response===
On the review aggregator website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], 30% of 10 critics' reviews and 83% of 207 audience reviews are positive. [[Roger Ebert]], writing for the [[Chicago Sun-Times]] said "Bondarchuk is so overwhelmed by the thousands of Russian cavalry troops he's been given to play with, and by his $25 million budget, and by his obsession for aerial photography, that his leading characters turn out scarcely more human than his extras."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/waterloo|website=Rotten Tomatoes| title=Waterloo| access-date=May 16, 2025}}</ref> Tony Mastroianni of the [[Cleveland Press]] wrote, "Waterloo is solid, sometimes to the point of lumbering... But Waterloo succeeds in what it set out to do - to re-create a major historical event and place it in some kind of perspective."

Writing in ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[Roger Greenspun]] called ''Waterloo'' "a very bad movie," citing Bondarchuk's "obsessive" directing and Steiger's overacting:
{{Blockquote
|text=Steiger plays a peace-loving Napoleon, crafty, tired, much weighted with the destiny he seems never to get off his mind. Like a [[Willy Loman]] not wholly aware that he has lost his territory, he alternately schemes and complains -— as if, in addition to all his other achievements, he had discovered at Waterloo the sources of theatrical naturalism. It is an awful performance, and every mannered point of it is emphasized by the elephantine selectivity of Bondarchuk's camera -— narrowing upon the eyes, a weary fold of flesh, the carefully hunched back, the hat, the pudgy man's walk. During the first parts of "Waterloo," when Napoleon is much in view, I thought that no director, not even Bondarchuk, merited Steiger's performance. Later, in the heat of the battle, I felt that not even Steiger need have suffered through Bondarchuk's direction. But now critical calm has put all things in perspective, and I realize that they richly deserved each other.<ref name="Greenspun">{{cite news|last=Greenspun|first=Roger|title=A Battle Fought Strictly for the Camera: Bondarchuk Directs Craig's 'Waterloo'|date=April 1, 1971|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1971/04/01/archives/screen-a-battle-fought-strictly-for-the-camerabondarchuk-directs.html|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=24 March 2024}}</ref>
}}

===Awards===
The film won two [[BAFTA]] awards in 1971 (best art direction and best costume design) and was nominated for a third (best cinematography).

The film was also [[novelization|novelised]] by [[Frederick E. Smith]], with the content based on the screenplay.

==Awards and nominations==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! scope="col" | Award
! scope="col" | Category
! scope="col" | Nominee
! scope="col" | Result
|-
| rowspan="3" | [[24th British Academy Film Awards|British Academy Film Award]]
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| [[Armando Nannuzzi]]
| {{Nominated}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design|Best Costume Design]]
| [[Maria De Matteis]]
| {{Won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Production Design|Best Art Direction]]
| [[Mario Garbuglia]]
| {{Won}}
|-
|[[David di Donatello]]
|[[David di Donatello for Best Film|Best Film]]
|[[Dino De Laurentiis]]
| {{won}}{{efn|Tied with ''[[The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (film)|The Garden of the Finzi-Continis]]'' and ''[[The Conformist (film)|The Conformist]]''}}
|-
|[[Nastro d'Argento]]
|Best Cinematography
|Armando Nannuzzi
| {{nom}}
|}
<!-- [[WP:NOR]]: ==Historical inaccuracies==
{{original research|date=August 2018}}

{{More citations needed section|date=October 2023}}

While the film portrays the events of the [[Hundred Days]] quite faithfully, including some allusions to and scenes from the [[Battle of Ligny]] and of [[Battle of Quatre Bras|Quatre Bras]], there were a few departures from historical fact, presumably made for [[artistic license|artistic purposes]], and some characters act as ciphers for others.

In the opening scene, where the marshals are attempting to persuade Napoleon to abdicate, Marshal Soult is present: in reality, in 1814 Soult was commanding the defence of [[Battle of Toulouse (1814)|Toulouse]] against Wellington's Army.

The Duchess of Richmond tells Wellington that she does not want her daughter "to wear black before she wears white". The tradition of the [[White wedding|bride wearing white]] did not become widespread until the 1840s, following [[Queen Victoria]]'s wedding.<ref>{{cite web |title=Why Do Brides Wear White? |url=https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-brides-wear-white |access-date=7 September 2021 |website=britannica.com}}[https://www.prestije.de/]</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rct.uk/collection/themes/exhibitions/royal-weddings-1840-1947/windsor-castle-drawings-gallery|title=Royal Weddings 1840-1947|website=Royal Collection Trust|access-date=19 January 2019}}</ref>

At the [[Duchess of Richmond's ball]] (which itself was held in a former carriage house rather than the magnificent ballroom depicted<ref>{{cite book |last=Foulkes |first=Nick| title=Dancing into Battle: A Social History of the Battle of Waterloo |publisher=Weidenfeld &Nicholson |year=2006 |page=138 |isbn=0-297-85078-4 }}</ref>), there is an entirely fictional romantic sub-plot with [[James Hay, Lord Hay|Lord Hay]] and one of the Duchess' daughters. However, her daughter Sarah did recall Lord Hay being present at the ball.

Perhaps the biggest inaccuracy in the film is the battleground itself: having had torrential rain the previous night, which delayed the French attack until midday, the battlefield was extremely muddy. In consequence, the British cavalry, in reality, would not have been able to acquire the speed shown in the film before encountering the French columns. However, here, as elsewhere, the film replicates a famous painting of the battle, in this case [[Elizabeth Thompson]]'s 1881 work ''[[Scotland Forever!]]'', which depicts the [[Royal Scots Greys]] galloping towards the enemy.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2015/jun/18/scottish-heroism-at-waterloo-should-not-be-forgotten|title=Scottish heroism at Waterloo should not be forgotten|date=2015-06-18|newspaper=The Guardian|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|access-date=2016-12-04}}</ref>

Another inaccuracy is that the Household cavalry do not seem to appear in the movie at all. Further, Ponsonby, commander of the Union Brigade, is believed to have initially been taken prisoner by French cavalry, before being killed during a failed rescue attempt. In the film, he tells the Earl of Uxbridge that [[William Ponsonby, 1st Baron Ponsonby|Ponsonby's father]] had been killed in battle by lancers, not least because he had been riding an inferior horse: in fact his father had been a politician who died of natural causes back in England,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |first=P. J. |last=Jupp |year=2004 |title=William Brabazon Ponsonby (1744–1806) |encyclopedia=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/22506}}</ref> and he is simply foretelling his own fate in the battle.

The British cavalry charge was aimed at d'Erlon's corps, but in the film the cavalry do not appear to engage French infantry at all, but instead charge straight into French artillery, scattering French gunners before themselves being driven back by French lancers, in scenes that bear some cinematic resemblance to the [[Charge of the Light Brigade]]. Nor are any 92nd Highlanders seen hanging onto their stirrups as they charge, as was recalled by Corporal Dickson of "F" Troop of the Scots Greys.

Overall, the film almost completely ignores the Dutch-Belgian and German elements of the army under Wellington's command, giving the impression that the allied army was essentially British. In reality, the British contingent was less than half of Wellington's troops.

Unlike the Prussians in the film, arriving at the right flank of the French force, [[Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von Bülow|General Bülow]]'s [[Order of battle of the Waterloo campaign#IV Corps 2|4th corps]] attacked at the rear-right of the French lines at the village of [[Plancenoit]]. Napoleon sent first his reserve corps (under [[Georges Mouton|General Lobau]]) and then the Second Foot Grenadiers, the second-most-senior corps of his Imperial Guard, to engage and delay these Prussians while maintaining his front line; these clashes in and around the village of Plancenoit were crucial to the battle but are not depicted in the film. (Around 7:30&nbsp;p.m., another Prussian corps under Marshal Blücher arrived on the battlefield to link with the British army on the grounds of the inn ''La Belle Alliance'', sealing the fate of the French force—as shown in the film.)

Prussian infantry in the film was depicted wearing black coats, which was only prevalent in certain militia bands such as the [[Lützow Free Corps]]. The regimental standards utilized by said advancing army, did not correspond with the presumably depicted Free Corps, which used the Prussian Landwehr standard.

The Duke of Gordon is depicted as leading his [[92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot|Gordon Highlanders]] into battle, and is described by the Duchess of Richmond as "uncle": in fact, he is a [[composite character]], representing the contributions of several members of the House of Gordon. The [[Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon|Duke at the time]], the founder and colonel of the regiment, was the Duchess of Richmond's ''father'', and he saw no active service overseas during the Napoleonic Wars. His son and the Duchess's brother, the [[George Gordon, 5th Duke of Gordon|Marquis of Huntly]] (later the 5th Duke) was a distinguished general, but held no command in the campaign, although anecdotal evidence suggests that he arrived during the aftermath of the battle.

The senior representative of the family at the battle was in fact the Duchess's own twenty-three-year-old [[Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5th Duke of Richmond|son, the Earl of March]], who would eventually become the 5th Duke's heir in 1836, and who served as a major and an [[aide-de-camp]] (ADC) to the Duke of Wellington. Another branch of the family was represented by another ADC, [[Alexander Gordon (British staff officer)|Colonel Sir Alexander Gordon]], aged twenty-eight or twenty-nine, the brother of the Earl of Aberdeen. In reality, both were young men similar in age and duty to Lord Hay. The field commander of the Gordon regiment during the campaign, Lieutenant Colonel, [[John Cameron of Fassiefern]], had been killed at the battle of Quatre Bras on 16 June.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |first1=H. M. |last1=Chichester |first2=John (reviewer)|last2=Sweetman |year=2004 |title=Cameron, John (1771–1815)|encyclopedia=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography|publisher= Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/4446}}</ref> The acting commander of the regiment during the battle appears to have been Major Donald MacDonald of Dalchosnie.

Lord Hay is seen being killed during the French cavalry attack, whilst inside a British square, with Wellington witnessing his death. Hay was actually killed at the Battle of Quatre Bras, two days earlier.

The story of the refusal of the guard to surrender has been the subject of much controversy over the centuries. Commander of the last Imperial Guard square, General [[Pierre Cambronne]], is portrayed as responding "merde" although he denied it later. Nor did he say "[[La garde meurt et ne se rend pas!]]" ("The Guard dies and does not surrender!") which is believed to have been uttered by General [[Claude-Étienne Michel]], commander of the [[Middle Guard (Napoleonic)|Middle Guard]].

Cambronne did not die in the battle, and having been knocked unconscious, was captured by Colonel [[Hugh Halkett]], commander of the 3rd Hanoverian Brigade. He later married the Scottish nurse who cared for him after the battle, and died in 1842.

The song "Boney Was a Warrior" sung when Wellington's troops are awaiting the attack was not written until after the battle. -->

==Home media==
''Waterloo'' was first released on VHS in 1996 in the United Kingdom by Columbia TriStar Home Video and it was released again on DVD in 1999. It was also released again on Blu-ray in 2021. The United States, however, it was only released on VHS by Paramount Home Video in 1991. Neither the DVD or Blu-Ray versions were released in the United States for a period of time.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

* Paul Davies, ''The Field of Waterloo'' (Pan Books, 1970) - "a profusely illustrated, graphic companion to the people, places and events depicted in WATERLOO - the spectacular Dino De Laurentiis production" {{ISBN|0-330-02601-1}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|0066549|Waterloo}}
* {{rotten-tomatoes|waterloo|Waterloo}}

{{Sergei Bondarchuk}}

[[Category:1970 films]]
[[Category:1970s war drama films]]
[[Category:1970s historical drama films]]
[[Category:1970 drama films]]
[[Category:Bondarchuk family]]
[[Category:British historical drama films]]
[[Category:British war drama films]]
[[Category:Columbia Pictures films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Étienne Maurice Gérard]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Michel Ney]]
[[Category:Depictions of Napoleon on film]]
[[Category:English-language Italian films]]
[[Category:English-language Soviet films]]
[[Category:Films about battles and military operations]]
[[Category:Films directed by Sergei Bondarchuk]]
[[Category:Films scored by Nino Rota]]
[[Category:Films scored by Wilfred Josephs]]
[[Category:Films about Napoleon]]
[[Category:Films set in 1812]]
[[Category:Films set in 1815]]
[[Category:Films set in France]]
[[Category:Films set in Belgium]]
[[Category:Films set in Waterloo, Belgium]]
[[Category:Films shot in Italy]]
[[Category:Films shot in Ukraine]]
[[Category:Italian drama films]]
[[Category:Mosfilm films]]
[[Category:Napoleonic Wars films]]
[[Category:Paramount Pictures films]]
[[Category:Russian war drama films]]
[[Category:Soviet historical drama films]]
[[Category:Soviet war drama films]]
[[Category:War films based on actual events]]
[[Category:War epic films]]
[[Category:Works about the Battle of Waterloo]]
[[Category:1970s English-language films]]
[[Category:1970s British films]]
[[Category:1970s Italian films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Louis XVIII]]
[[Category:Jean-de-Dieu Soult]]
[[Category:English-language historical drama films]]
[[Category:English-language war drama films]]