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MONSIEUR N. |
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Director:
Antoine de Caunes
Screenplay: René Manzor
Cast:
Napoléon Bonaparte: Philippe Torreton
Hudson Lowe: Richard E. Grant
Basil Heathcote: Jay Rodan
Albine de Montholon: Elsa Zylberstein
Marshal Bertrand: Roschdy Zem
Cipriani: Bruno Putzulu
Général Montholon: Stéphane Freiss
Général Gourgaud: Frédéric
Pierrot
Général Balcombe: Siobhàn Hewlett
Running time: 127 minutes
Year of production: France - 2003
Rating: Not rated (brief nudity)
Gauge: 35mm (color)
Language: French and English
Distributor: Empire Pictures
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“The
actors, without exception, play magnificently, the intimate
ambience of this house of exile is particularly convincing,
and the narration in flashbacks reminds us that the film
is both a reconstitution of a little-known period in the
Emperor’s life and a historical thriller.”
Guillaume Tion | MonsieurCinema.com |
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The most widely
accepted explanation for Napoleon Bonaparte’s death is
that he was poisoned, but the case is still open and the enigma
surrounding his last years in exile is at the heart of Monsieur
N. In 1815, Bonaparte arrives on the windswept and overcast
island of St. Helena. An unlikable character, Napoleon still
considers himself Emperor and behaves as such. Bonaparte’s
jailer and the island’s governor, Sir Hudson Lowe, a
stubborn and authoritarian figure, maintains the island’s
security at absurd levels. One thousand British soldiers are
posted to the fortifications. At sea, eleven battleships surround
the island. Bonaparte is kept under house arrest at Longwood
with remnants of his general staff and a British officer under
orders to watch over him. Relations within Napoleon’s
inner circle are fraught with jealousy, bickering, greed,
plotting and hatred. Gradually, the number of those on whom
he can rely dwindles, and on his death bed in 1831, Bonaparte
is accompanied by only three of his staff. The British liaison
officer, the only fictional character and a great admirer
of Bonaparte, investigates the mystery of his death and discovers
an inconceivable plot... Based on real events, Monsieur
N. is a powerful historical intrigue and a compelling
story of one of the most important figures of the 19th century.
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| PHOTO Empire
Pictures |
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