Is this an original Eames Lounge Chair?  

IMO: Yes
Proportions look allright, the wear on the leather indicates age, plus I've never seen a copy with brown leather. Are there no stickers under the seat?

Strange
Wood looks too thick from here.
I like the patinated leather effect, but I presume this is a new piece?

they definitely make one in...
they definitely make one in brown leather..and as far as the patina- companies have gotten extremely good at making new look old i.e. clothing etc...it would be interesting to see what is in those large boxes behind the chair..or if the bubble wrap on the legs was form fitting rather than wrapped...looks "factory" wrapped to me...but id say its worth a look, even the repros are rather priceynice looking chairs but always seemed bulky to me...

Armrests are way too thick.
Patina seems too even like no one ever sat in it. I'm quite sure it's a copy.

4 star base??
It smells of a knock-off to me. And I think I'd tire of the distressed leather quickly. Odd to see a new cherry shell with the old 4 star base also.
just a thought....

.
or maybe it is a 5 star base. I still don't like the leather.

wood looks thick, mine is...
wood looks thick, mine is only about 8.5mm thick but it's a vintage, dunno about the new ones.

...no its a 5 star base
...that I know for sure...but I also found it weird to find that kind of leather with the new veneer...

Base looks wrong from what I...
Base looks wrong from what I can make out, leather has been 'aged' at the factory to make the chair look vintage. Looks a fake.

Knockoff
And a pretty obvious one at that.

I'm not so sure
The armrests do look a little thick, but the rest of the chair looks good. The distressed leather could be a special order - saddle type leather or something.
One has to ask some other questions to ascertain for sure. Like WHERE is this chair? What is the price? What is the back story?
If you have seen the chair in person, why didn't you look underneath for stickers? If it's a new-ish chair it should bear markings.
If you are going to see the chair, pop one of the cushions off. The inside of the shell should be veneered with the same material as the outside (albeit, not in a glossy finish)
There should be 3 clips on the inside of the headrest, plus one snap at the bottom.

i really love this leather. ...
i really love this leather. however, arm rests are too thick, and call me too picky, but the tuft buttons are too small also.

Sorry,double post
oops! :^)

Head scratcher fer sure
Hmmm...Darn good copy,if it is a repro,otherwise,the shells could have been repaired/refinished and the leather remains original.HM always packs the base like that when shipping.Need to look beneath for the HM logo.