The Emperor's New Clothes

"The world's most powerful man is about to fight his greatest battle... between love and glory."

2001 1h 47m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 45

ComedyDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Napoleon, exiled, devises a plan to retake the throne. He'll swap places with commoner Eugene Lenormand, sneak into Paris, then Lenormand will reveal himself and Napoleon will regain his throne. Things don't go at all well; first, the journey proves more difficult than expected, but more disastrously, Lenormand enjoys himself too much to reveal the deception. Napoleon adjusts somewhat uneasily to the life of a commoner while waiting, while Lenormand gorges on rich food.

“The world's most powerful man is about to fight his greatest battle... between love and glory.”

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Cast

Ian Holm
Napoleon Bonaparte / Sergeant Eugene Lenormand
Iben Hjejle
Nicole 'Pumpkin' Truchaut
Tim McInnerny
Dr. Lambert
Nigel Terry
Montholon
Eddie Marsan
Louis Marchand
Tom Watson
Gerard
Hugh Bonneville
Bertrand
Murray Melvin
Antommarchi

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Alan Taylor
Writers: Kevin Molony, Alan Taylor, Herbie Wave
Languages: English
Countries: Germany, Italy, 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

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 3 countries: Germany, Italy, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Alan Taylor, shot by Alessio Gelsini Torresi. 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 Rachel Portman. 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 Masahiro Hirakubo 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

Ian Holm and Iben Hjejle and Tim McInnerny carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The world's most powerful man is about to fight his greatest battle... between love and glory.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0282768 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Alan Taylor directs. Alessio Gelsini Torresi behind the camera. Rachel Portman scores. Masahiro Hirakubo cuts. Produced in Germany, Italy, United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

125 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2International production across 3 countries: Germany, Italy, United Kingdom.
3Directed by Alan Taylor, shot by Alessio Gelsini Torresi. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Rachel Portman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Masahiro Hirakubo shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Ian Holm and Iben Hjejle and Tim McInnerny carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The world's most powerful man is about to fight his greatest battle... between love and glory.".
8IMDB entry: tt0282768 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 45 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Alessio Gelsini Torresi
Original score: Rachel Portman
Editing: Masahiro Hirakubo
Production design: Andrea Crisanti
Costume design: Sergio Ballo
Makeup / hair: Anna De Santis
Stunt coordinator: Riccardo Mioni
Runtime: 107 min · 1h 47m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: The Emperor's New Clothes (2001)

Also by

Alan Taylor

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-06-26
★ 7/10
Exiled Napoleon (Sir Ian Holm) and his aides have come up with a cunning plan to get him from exile back into the heart of Paris where he can resurrect his imperial ambitions and restore his country to greatness. They have procured the services of an erstwhile deck hand who is the doppelgänger of the emperor and who has agreed to swap places. Carefully smuggled back to the mainland, the impoverished traveller has to make his own way to the city and with very few that he can trust to be loyal, he befriends the recently widowed “Nicole” (Iben Hjejle) and her young son “Gerard” (Tom Watson). Her late husband was to have been one of his contacts, and when it transpires that his replacement on St. Helena has decided not to play ball any longer, the emperor’s chances of regaining his throne look forlorn. Can he, though, in the face of the increasingly jealous hostility of “Dr. Lambert” (Tim McInnerny) make a new relationship with “Nicole” and perhaps make an whole new life for himself? Can he forget that he was who he was, or will it frustrate and haunt him to he grave? Sir Ian delivers quite a touching performance here, speculating on just what might have happened if Napoleon had ever managed to secret himself from his luxurious prison. He learns to appreciate life from the perspective of the ordinary, war-weary, population who cared not for grand ambitions. They just wanted a roof over their heads and food on the table for their families. The burgeoning romance is delicately developed and there’s a good rapport between man and woman and also man and boy, too. There has been plenty of attention paid to the detail of the film and there is the odd bit of comedy interspersed through this story of longing. Not really for history buffs, not romantic ones either - but it’s an enjoyable piece of postulation from an an actor who knew his craft.

Production companies