Synopsis
The Empire (L'Empire, 2024) is Bruno Dumont's deadpan sci-fi you can watch online on iFILM, where a cosmic clan war breaks out among the peeling fishing boats of France's Opal Coast. Dumont scrambles the genre on purpose: it borrows from Star Wars yet plays like a rural drama acted by local non-professionals.
In a sleepy northern village, an odd baby is born — possibly a new messiah, possibly an antichrist — and two extraterrestrial factions, Good and Evil, both want him. Their envoys abduct fishermen, lop off heads, summon a cosmic storm and prep for a final battle, all while passing for ordinary village eccentrics. Lyna Khoudri, Anamaria Vartolomei, Camille Cottin and Fabrice Luchini headline.
Dumont collides blockbuster grandeur with absurdity and crude humor; the film took the Jury Grand Prix, a Silver Bear, at the 2024 Berlinale. It's an acquired taste — anyone expecting smooth action will bounce off, while fans of strange auteur cinema get a rare treat. Stream The Empire (2024) online on iFILM.
Starring
Recommendations
Comments 0