The Last Emperor (1987)

The story of the final Emperor of China.

Director:

Bernardo Bertolucci

Writers:

Mark Peploe (screenplay), Bernardo Bertolucci (screenplay)

Stars:

John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole

Won 9 Oscars. Another 48 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Lone	...	Pu Yi - Adult
Joan Chen	...	Wan Jung
Peter O'Toole	...	Reginald 'R. J.' Johnston
Ruocheng Ying	...	The Governor (as Ying Ruocheng)
Victor Wong	...	Chen Pao Shen
Dennis Dun	...	Big Li
Ryuichi Sakamoto	...	Amakasu (as Ryûichi Sakamoto)
Maggie Han	...	Eastern Jewel
Ric Young	...	Interrogator
Vivian Wu	...	Wen Hsiu (as Wu Jun Mei)
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa	...	Chang (as Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa)
Jade Go	...	Ar Mo
Fumihiko Ikeda	...	Yoshioka
Richard Vuu	...	Pu Yi - 3 Years
Tsou Tijger	...	Pu Yi - 8 Years (as Tijger Tsou)

Storyline

This sweeping account of the life of Pu-Yi, the last emperor of China, follows the leader's tumultuous reign. After being captured by the Red Army as a war criminal in 1950, Pu-Yi recalls his childhood from prison. He remembers his lavish youth in the Forbidden City, where he was afforded every luxury but unfortunately sheltered from the outside world and complex political situation surrounding him. As revolution sweeps through China, the world Pu-Yi knew is dramatically upended.

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Plot Keywords:

cricket the insect | china | bigfoot character | eating a flower | drug | 

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Taglines:

He was the Lord of Ten Thousand Years, the absolute monarch of China. He was born to rule a world of ancient tradition. Nothing prepared him for our world of change.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

UK Italy China France

Language:

English Mandarin Japanese

Release Date:

15 April 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Last Emperor

Filming Locations:

Beijing Studios, Beijing, China

Box Office

Budget:

£23,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$149,460, 20 November 1987, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$43,984,230

Company Credits

Production Co:

Recorded Picture Company (RPC),Hemdale,Yanco Films Limited

Technical Specs

Runtime:

163 min 219 min (television)

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Marlon Brando, Sean Connery and William Hurt were considered for the role of Reginald Johnson.

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Goofs

When Pu Yi walks out on the terrace during his inauguration the counting of the "kowtow" starts. At the inauguration or coronation of the emperor 3 times 3 bows should be made but you can clearly hear the count until 11.

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Quotes

Pu Yi - 8 Years: I do not understand. I do not understand.
Lady Aisin-Gioro: Your majesty is a big boy now. He cannot have a wet nurse anymore. It is much better like this. Much healthier.
Pu Yi - 8 Years: But she is not just my wet nurse. She is my butterfly.

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Alternate Versions

The theatrical version runs 163 minutes. A 218 minute version was released in the US in 1998 under the mistaken title of the "Director's Cut". It was known by this erroneous title until the 2008 Criterion DVD and Blu-ray Disc came out. Bertolucci and DP Vittorio Storaro made it clear while working on the DVD and BD that the shorter theatrical version is without doubt the director's cut. The 218 minute version was an early cut meant only to be aired as a four-part television mini-series by the Italian television network that funded the film.

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Connections

Featured in The Story of China: The Age of Revolution (2016)

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Soundtracks

China Boy
(1922) (uncredited)
Lyrics by Dick Winfree
Music by Phil Boutelje
played by the jazz band after Pu Yi finishes singing "Am I Blue"

User Reviews

Impressive

'The Last Emperor' tells the story of Pu Yi, as an adult played by John Lone, the last emperor of China. He was three years old when he first sat down on the Dragon Throne. He didn't know anything. The movie tells his story from that moment in flashbacks. We also get to see Pu Yi when the Chinese Communists have the power and he is imprisoned. Because people have taken care of him the rest of his life, from three years old to the moments inside the prison, it still feels he knows nothing.

To tell you about the life of Pu Yi would be a mistake. You have to see this movie to learn more about it. The strange thing is that Pu Yi can not do and decide much for himself. He is a hero of a movie where he is controlled by rules and other people. That is one of the reasons not many real things happen. We see the emperor grow up, we see him take an empress and a concubine, and then he has to leave the Forbidden City because the enemy is at the gate.

The impressive thing here are the locations and the costumes. Everything looks fabulous and it is not a surprise to find out that the movie was shot on location. With all the extras in those beautiful costumes there are a lot of very impressive scenes. May be the movie is a bit too long for some, it didn't really bother me. Director Bernardo Bertolucci has made a terrific movie.