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:

1500 slaves. 353,260,000 royal subjects. Warlords. Concubines. And 2 wives. He was the loneliest boy in the world.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

UK Italy China France USA

Language:

English Mandarin Japanese

Release Date:

15 April 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

El último emperador

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

The first film in Bernardo Bertolucci's "oriental trilogy", followed by The Sheltering Sky (1990) and Little Buddha (1993).

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Goofs

The tour guide at the end of the film says that Pu Yi was 3 years old at his coronation. Puyi was born Feb. 7, 1906 and invested Nov. 14, 1908, aged 2 years 10 months. However, the guide was likely using the Chinese age system, in which a person is automatically aged "1" when born.

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Quotes

Pu Yi, at 15: Who is this George Washington?
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston: A famous American, your majesty. A revolutionary general, the first American president.
Pu Yi, at 15: Ah, like Mr. Lenin in Russia?
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston: Not quite.
Pu Yi, at 15: Does he have a car?
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston: He lived a long time ago, your majesty.
Pu Yi, at 15: *I* want a car.

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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

Referenced in The Oprah Winfrey Show: Summer Movie Reviews (1996)

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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

An Example of Quantity and Quality Combining to Make an Unforgettable Film

"The Last Emperor" is a near perfect film. It was nominated for nine Oscars in 1987 and it won nine (including the Best Picture Oscar). The movie is about the life of Pu Yi (John Lone), China's last emperor. In spite of becoming emperor at the age of three, Yi's reign was more of a burden than anything else. Yi would ultimately end up living an unsavory life of imprisonment which is heartrending to the viewer. "The Last Emperor" is visually stunning. The minute details are amazing. However, the story stands up high as well. Historically accurate for the most part, "The Last Emperor" is easily one of the top 10 films of the 1980s and overall an exceptional achievement in every cinematic department known to man. 5 stars out of 5.