Nostradamus

"His story is still unfinished five centuries later."

1994 1h 59m EN

😐

5.8

MID

★5.8TMDB · 84

DramaHistory

Synopsis

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A dramatic retelling of the life of Michel de Nostredame, from his early work as a plague doctor to his time at the court of Catherine de Medici, after he became famed for his prophetic almanacs. Stars Rutger Hauer and Julia Ormond.

“His story is still unfinished five centuries later.”

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Cast

Tchéky Karyo
Nostradamus
F. Murray Abraham
Scalinger
Rutger Hauer
The Mystic Monk
Amanda Plummer
Catherine De Medici
Julia Ormond
Marie
Assumpta Serna
Anne
Anthony Higgins
King Henry II
Diana Quick
Diane de Poitiers

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Roger Christian
Writers: Knut Boeser, Roger Christian, Piers Ashworth
Languages: English
Countries: France, Germany, Romania, United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

32 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

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International production across 4 countries: France, Germany, Romania, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Roger Christian, shot by Denis Crossan. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Barrington Pheloung. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Alan Strachan shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Tchéky Karyo and F. Murray Abraham and Rutger Hauer carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "His story is still unfinished five centuries later.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0110689 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Roger Christian directs. Denis Crossan behind the camera. Barrington Pheloung scores. Alan Strachan cuts. Produced in France, Germany, Romania, United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

132 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2International production across 4 countries: France, Germany, Romania, United Kingdom.
3Directed by Roger Christian, shot by Denis Crossan. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Barrington Pheloung. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Alan Strachan shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Tchéky Karyo and F. Murray Abraham and Rutger Hauer carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "His story is still unfinished five centuries later.".
8IMDB entry: tt0110689 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 84 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Denis Crossan
Original score: Barrington Pheloung
Editing: Alan Strachan
Production design: Peter J. Hampton
Costume design: Ulla Gothe
Makeup / hair: Joana-Yeny Lita
Runtime: 119 min · 1h 59m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Nostradamus (1994)

Also by

Roger Christian

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-11-09
★ 6/10
Tchéky Karyo really doesn’t impress very much as he takes on the role of one of history’s most enigmatic characters for this good looking but lacklustre costume drama. Set against a backdrop of plagues and widespread religious fervour in 16th century France, we follow this man who adopts a less superstitious and more scientific approach to dealing with many of the contagions that routinely decimated the population - rich and poor, high and low. Constantly fearful of a vengeful church - especially as he purports to be able to see the future, he allies with “Scaliger” (F. Murray Abraham) and heads to the court where he ends up with the ear of both Catherine de Medici (Amanda Plummer) and her ten year old son, Charles IX. It’s over-scripted and disappointingly pace-less, I felt, and though Rutger Hauer manages to raise the temperature of the drama a bit as the mad monk and Abraham likewise enlivens things, the whole thing rather lumbers along in a similar but less entertaining vein to the contemporaneous “Cadfael” mysteries that were on television at the time. Nostradamus was clearly a man who lived his life to the full, sailed very close to the wind and was no stranger to peccadilloes but somehow this really only tips the iceberg of his chronology and tries to squeeze far too much into two hours that might better have been made as a more detailed, better cast and characterful mini-series. It’s not terrible, but is instantly forgettable.

Production companies