Monsieur N. 2003

AV Club: Read more

Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: A film of polished ensemble performances, burnished period interiors and fine landscapes, but it's a little bloodless. Read more

Ella Taylor, L.A. Weekly: Though at over two hours the movie is too long and too slow, de Caunes sustains a sense of mystery and ambiguity to the end of what is both a satisfying character study and a stately quasi-thriller for amateur historians. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: Screenwriter Rene Manzor weaves a tangled web of speculation, but de Caunes, following his vampire feature debut Love Bites, has no clue how to dramatize this intrigue. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: Monsieur N, Antoine de Caunes's densely plotted costume drama, suggests that Napoleon's demise might have been an elaborate hoax through which he escaped into anonymity. Read more

Derek Adams, Time Out: Read more

Lisa Nesselson, Variety: Dramatically dense, neatly thesped and visually involving. Read more

Ben Kenigsberg, Village Voice: As modest conspiracy-mongering, the movie is perfectly robust, earning its dramatic impact from its classical sense of intrigue and Philippe Torreton's testy performance in the title role. Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: Unfortunately, that same suspense -- Poisoned wine! Secret pacts! Doppelgangers! -- is sometimes a little too stiff, making Monsieur N. play at times like a second-tier Agatha Christie mystery. Read more