The Emperor of Paris

France, Vincent Cassel and the best historical film of this year. The main character is the dreaded Vidocq, a famous thief with a great reputation who is forced to work with the police due to adverse conditions and decides to clean the streets of murderers, thieves and similar vermin. Great period atmosphere, a breathtaking Vincent, great narrative pace, awesome sets and plenty of suspense and of course a piece of history. Good stuff. 85%. (08/08/2019)

Jean-François Richet sometimes rushes a bit too much, and at other times he needlessly stalemates in an attempt to squeeze in some of those "sort of artsy shots", but Vincent Cassel and his crew are fine badasses, Paris is wonderfully nasty, and it has a fine Dumasian adventure story feel. If Vidocq comes back with a sequel, I'll be happy. (03/27/2020)

On the one hand, what I find disappointing is that the highly stimulating material of Vidocq’s life (furthermore, backed up by such a great cast, director and production design) is reduced to a mere dime-a-dozen adventure that lacks logic. On the other hand, we can be pleased that it is nevertheless a fine, uncompromising movie in which emotions are well portrayed. In fact, it inevitably seems like a successful adaptation of one of Xavier Dorison's albums. Whether that is a positive or a negative, however, is a completely different question. In my opinion, it is positive and not an insignificant one. (11/17/2019)

The atmosphere of The Emperor of Paris is comparable to the French masterpiece Les Misérables, but that's where all the similarities end. Unfortunately, the story doesn't stand on a very solid foundation and thus it feels somewhat fragmented. In addition, the initial tension fades as the story progresses. My full attention was deservedly won by the charismatic Vincent Cassel, but that's not enough to get me excited about the film. (70%) (02/02/2021)

Jean-François Richet traveled back in time to deliver a gritty drama set in Napoleonic France, a period where no one spared anyone, and frankly, it’s a time you wouldn’t want to live in. I was quite surprised by the high budget (€22 million), which is not something I often see in films from the land of the Gallic rooster. However, the investment paid off; you can see the money on screen at every turn. As for the story, Vincent Cassel is a seasoned actor who has appeared in many types of roles and always managed to captivate the audience with his talent. Here, he is convincing as Vidocq. I appreciated the gritty tone, which Richet handles impeccably (as evidenced by his two-part masterpiece Mesrine: Killer Instinct). The gunfights are naturalistic, and there are even some raw, close-quarter battles between characters. The story and the film itself can be considered top-notch, providing insight into a character who played a significant role in history. The standout element for me was the character of the hussar and his storyline, which concluded very effectively (a real cherry on top from a script perspective). I’m giving it 85%. P.S. When I saw Marco Beltrami's name in the credits, I immediately understood why the soundtrack was so well done. (04/14/2020)