Back to trending
Emperor

Emperor

History · War · Drama · 2020

An escaped slave travels north and has chance encounters with Frederick Douglass and John Brown. Based on the life story of Shields Green.

Movie details

Emperor

“Son of kings. Father of revolution.”

2020 History · War · Drama 1h 39m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.5 / 10

Community rating

An escaped slave travels north and has chance encounters with Frederick Douglass and John Brown. Based on the life story of Shields Green.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Emperor?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Glory

Glory

Drama · 1989

Robert Gould Shaw leads the US Civil War's first all-black volunteer company, fighting prejudices of both his own Union army and the Confederates.

Savior

Savior

History · 1998

A hardened mercenary in the Foreign Legion begins to find his own humanity when confronted with atrocities during the fighting in Bosnia.

Young Washington

Young Washington

History · 2026

Before he led a nation, George Washington was a young soldier thrown into a global conflict. With alliances crumbling and war closing in, he must choose who to trust and confront the leader he's becoming.

The Last of the Mohicans

The Last of the Mohicans

History · 1992

In war-torn colonial America, in the midst of a bloody battle between British, the French and Native American allies, the aristocratic daughter of a British Colonel and her party are captured by a group of Huron warriors. Fortunately, a group of three Mohican trappers comes to their rescue.

Beneath Hill 60

Beneath Hill 60

Drama · 2010

The true story of Australia's cat-and-mouse underground mine warfare—one of the most misunderstood, misrepresented and mystifying conflicts of WW I. It was secret struggle BENEATH the Western Front that combined daring engineering, technology and science. Few on the surface knew of the brave, claustrophobic and sometimes barbaric work of these tunnellers.

Flyboys

Flyboys

Drama · 2006

The adventures of the Lafayette Escadrille, young Americans who volunteered for the French military before the U.S. entered World War I, and became the country's first fighter pilots.

Gods and Generals

Gods and Generals

Drama · 2003

Follows the personal and professional life of Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson, a brilliant if eccentric Confederate general, from the outbreak of the American Civil War until its halfway point.

Woman Walks Ahead

Woman Walks Ahead

Drama · 2018

Based on a true story, this riveting western follows a headstrong New York widow as she journeys west to meet Sioux chief Sitting Bull, facing off with an army officer intent on war with Native Americans.

The Secrets We Keep

The Secrets We Keep

Thriller · 2020

In post-World War II America, a woman, rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband, kidnaps her neighbor and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her.

The Retrieval

The Retrieval

Western · 2013

On the outskirts of the Civil War, a boy is sent north by a bounty hunter gang to retrieve a wanted man.

Where it lives

Watch in your region.

Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.

Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.

Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Mark Amin

Written by

Mark Amin · Pat Charles

Dayo Okeniyi

Dayo Okeniyi

Shields Green

Bruce Dern

Bruce Dern

Levi Coffin

James Cromwell

James Cromwell

John Brown

Kat Graham

Kat Graham

Delores

Ben Robson

Ben Robson

Luke McCabe

Naturi Naughton

Naturi Naughton

Sarah Green

Paul Scheer

Paul Scheer

Duvane Henderson

Court is in session

Put Emperor on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.