The Emperor's Club (2002)

An idealistic prep school teacher attempts to redeem an incorrigible student.

Director:

Michael Hoffman

Writers:

Ethan Canin (short story "The Palace Thief"), Neil Tolkin (screenplay)

Stars:

Kevin Kline, Emile Hirsch, Joel Gretsch

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Kline	...	William Hundert
Emile Hirsch	...	Sedgewick Bell
Embeth Davidtz	...	Elizabeth
Rob Morrow	...	James Ellerby
Edward Herrmann	...	Headmaster Woodbridge
Harris Yulin	...	Senator Bell
Paul Dano	...	Martin Blythe
Rishi Mehta	...	Deepak Mehta
Jesse Eisenberg	...	Louis Masoudi
Gabriel Millman	...	Robert Brewster (as Gabe Millman)
Chris Morales	...	Eugene Field
Luca Bigini	...	Copeland Gray
Michael Coppola	...	Russell Hall
Sean Fredricks	...	Mr. Harris
Katherine O'Sullivan	...	The Nun

Storyline

William Hundert is a passionate and principled Classics professor who finds his tightly-controlled world shaken and inexorably altered when a new student, Sedgewick Bell, walks into his classroom. What begins as a fierce battle of wills gives way to a close student-teacher relationship, but results in a life lesson for Hundert that will still haunt him a quarter of a century later.

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Plot Keywords:

golf resort | told in flashback | ear piece | marriage | library | 

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Taglines:

In everyone's life there's that one person who makes all the difference.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site - synopsis and picture gallery Official site [France]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 November 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Palace Thief

Filming Locations:

New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,846,780, 24 November 2002

Gross USA:

$14,118,751

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$16,318,449

Company Credits

Production Co:

Beacon Communications, Fine Line Features, Horsepower Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (purple) Color (RED) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film cast includes one Oscar winner: Kevin Kline and one Oscar nominee: Jesse Eisenberg.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the Mr. Julius Caesar contest at St. Benedict's, Sedgewick Bell is standing on the right and Louis Masoudi on the left, from Mr. Hundert's perspective. Later they have inexplicably switched positions, with Bell on the left.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Valet: Is everything okay, sir?
William Hundert: Fine, thank you. Here.
[reaches into his pocket]
William Hundert: Let me, uh...
Valet: That's not necessary, sir.
[walks away]
William Hundert: [narrating] As I've gotten older, I realize I'm certain of only two things. Days that begin with rowing on a lake are better than days that do not. Second, a man's character is his fate. And as a student of history, I find this hard to refute. For most of us our stories can be written long before we die. There are exceptions among the great men of history, ...

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Connections

References Breathless (1960)

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Soundtracks

Funk 49
Written by Jim Fox, Joe Walsh, and Dale Peters
Performed by James Gang
Courtesy of MCA Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Kevin Kline at his best

There is no doubt that Kevin Kline is both a funny man and a fine comedic actor. However, as he has proved yet again, anything other than dramatic roles is a waste of his acting talent.

In the finest film he has made, he is superb in his role as school teacher and mentor to a generation of boys -- including one particular bad egg.

Excellently cast, scripted and acted, this is a must see.