Aliens Invade France in Bruno Dumont’s Absurdist Space Opera ‘The Empire’
From the singular mind of writer-director Bruno Dumont (Humanité, Twentynine Palms) comes The Empire, an absurdist parody of space opera tropes popularized by Star Wars. Hailed as “beautifully crafted and certifiably insane” by The Hollywood Reporter, the French film opens at New York’s IFC Center on March 7 with national expansion to follow from Kino […]
From the singular mind of writer-director Bruno Dumont (Humanité, Twentynine Palms) comes The Empire, an absurdist parody of space opera tropes popularized by Star Wars.
Hailed as “beautifully crafted and certifiably insane” by The Hollywood Reporter, the French film opens at New York’s IFC Center on March 7 with national expansion to follow from Kino Lorber.
Lyna Khoudri (The French Dispatch), Anamaria Vartolomei (Mickey 17), Camille Cottin (“Killing Eve”), and Fabrice Luchini (In the House) star in the apocalyptic sci-fi comedy drama.
In a picturesque fishing village in Northern France, a very special child is born, unleashing a secret war between extraterrestrial forces of good and evil. In an attempt to restore their empires, two opposing forces from the depths of outer space, One and Zero, unleash an apocalyptic conflict on Earth.
The villainous Zero forces secretly take over the bodies of village locals in order to foster pandemonium on the planet. At the same time, a new species engineered by the One is working towards a new, harmonious evolution. While waiting for the final battle, the imperial legions struggle to win humanity over to their cause.
The Empire premiered at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Silver Bear Jury Prize.
