The Emperor's Wife

2003 "A fairy tale for grown ups."
5.3| 1h40m| en
Details

In an undisclosed location and time, in the land of 1001 nights, the law dictates that the Emperor must take a new wife if his current Empress does not bear a son within seven years of marriage. At the celebration Ball of their sixth wedding anniversary, the Emperor (MAX BEESLEY - Torque) and his faithful manservant, Chamberlain (JONATHAN RHYS-MEYERS - Vanity Fair, Bend It Like Beckham, I'll Sleep When I'm Dead) begin the covert operation to find and prepare a virgin candidate to become the new Empress.A suitable young woman, Sabah (LETICIA DOLERA) is secretly transported into an isolated wing in the Imperial Palace. In this prison of fairytale rooms, she is tutored by the Masters and spied upon by the Emperor and Chamberlain. Should the current Empress (ROSANA PASTOR) conceive, everyone in the secret wing will be executed.

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Reviews

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.
Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.
Emerenciano From the very beginning to the end I expected something interesting to happen in this film. But I must tell you that NOTHING good took place. From the screenplay to the actors performance, "The Emperor's Wife" makes us feel like giving up watching the DVD and going for a good sleep.It's actually the story of a emperor who decides to find a new wife once he realises his wife cannot give him a baby. Could it be a good story? Yes, it could, but, unfortunately, it isn't. The film is extremely slow and the situation are not natural. Sometimes we just can't believe our eyes. The scenes are pathetic and the face expressions are not true.
Khaderach19 First time I saw this movie, I was a little annoyed with the atmosphere. It seemed too lost in its own mythology to be anything close to approachable. Second time I saw it, I now fully understand the whole symbiosis of the art style with the plot. (mind you, some people wont get it at all). The plot was traditional in the fairy tale sense; but with a more mature theme. The acting was effective enough to keep the audience in interest, without being too sappy or thematic. Special recognition for Rhys-Meyers, who plays his affection for Sabah, with a false dignity, even though through his eyes you can see the man suffer. Very well acted on his part.I'd give it an 8.5 out of 10.This movie is good, if you can read more into the whole movie, instead of just the plot or artistry.
vdg I was lucky to get a copy of this film, and after reading some reviews, I had great expectations about it. Without a doubt this film would've been on of the greatest art movie, but it fails to deliver. My first impression was that Julie Taymor's TITUS, had a big impact on this movie, and I would've loved to see the same kind of acting and direction. Unfortunately the movie dilutes from the initial high level, to something that's nothing more but a cheap art film. I would've like to see more of the costumes and the décor and less of the bad acting of some of the actors… Interesting camera movements, reminiscent of Greenaway's films, a quite pleasant music score, original screenplay, but in the end you are left with the desire of MORE. For movie lovers I think is worth take look at it, and in this commercial world it's a nice exception from the mainstream films.7/10
allessiexrs Stunned I was when I saw this movie. The story-line, the atmosphere, the soundtrack, the acting and actors and especially the art-direction were amazing. From the first moment I was caught by this fairytail for grown ups. You wanna dream away in the cinema...just visit this movie!

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