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The Last Emperor (1987)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
18 December 1987 (USA)
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Tagline:
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.
Plot:
The story of the final Emperor of China. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Won 9 Oscars.
Another 39 wins
&
12 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(42 articles)
Official “Creation” Trailer
(From Filmofilia. 21 December 2009, 10:10 AM, PST)
Nathaniel Thanks You
(From FilmExperience. 26 November 2009, 5:00 PM, PST)
(From Filmofilia. 21 December 2009, 10:10 AM, PST)
Nathaniel Thanks You
(From FilmExperience. 26 November 2009, 5:00 PM, PST)
User Comments:
A great artistic achievement
more (95 total)
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 | |
| Ryûichi Sakamoto | ... | Amakasu | |
| 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) |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
163 min | 219 min (television version)
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.00 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby (35 mm prints) |
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)
Certification:
Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (1999) |
Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating) |
Canada:AA (Ontario) |
Canada:G (Quebec) |
Canada:PA (Manitoba) |
Germany:12 (director's cut) |
Germany:12 |
UK:15 (director's cut) |
Iceland:12 |
Brazil:Livre |
USA:TV-14 (TV rating) |
Italy:T |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:M |
Chile:14 |
Finland:K-11 (re-rating) |
Finland:K-14 (original rating) |
France:U |
Singapore:NC-16 |
South Korea:12 |
Sweden:11 |
UK:15 |
USA:PG-13 |
Netherlands:12 (director's cut)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
This was the first western film made in and about the country to be produced with full Chinese government cooperation since 1949.
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Goofs:
Factual errors: At the time when he next sees his mother, Pu Yi says, "My mother has not seen me for seven years." That would make the year 1915, but it is wrong. He should say, "My mother has not seen me for four years," which makes the year 1912. In the spring of 1912, the new republican government divided the Forbidden City by constructing a wall, thus restricting the emperor's domain. Assuming that it is that dividing wall on which Pu Yi and Pu Chieh climb, one must reasonably assume that, since the wall is clearly under construction, the date is mid-1912 at the latest. If so, then Pu Yi has just turned six, not eight, and has been separated from his family for four years, not seven.
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Quotes:
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston:
Words are important.
Pu Yi, at 15: Why are words important?
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston: If you cannot say what you mean, your majesty, you will never mean what you say and a gentleman should always mean what he says.
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Pu Yi, at 15: Why are words important?
Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston: If you cannot say what you mean, your majesty, you will never mean what you say and a gentleman should always mean what he says.
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008) (TV)
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Soundtrack:
Kaiser Walzer (Emperor Waltz) op. 437
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FAQ
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Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Last Emperor" is a monumental, perfect film, and stands as one of the great artistic achievements in any artistic medium.
Told in a complicated flashback/ flash-forward style, it's the story of Pu Yi (born 1906) who was the last absolute monarch of China. During his lifetime he falls from the Lord of Ten Thousand Years, the emperor/God of billions of Chinese, to an anonymous peasant worker in communist China.
Pu Yi was the child emperor from 1908 until the Chinese revolution in 1911 when he had to abdicate. He was allowed to remain in the Forbidden City but was stripped of his power by the communists. He was expelled from the city in 1924 by a warlord. In 1932, Puyi was installed by the Japanese as the ruler of Manchukuo, a puppet state of Imperial Japan. At the end of World War II, Pu yi was captured by the Soviet Red Army and turned over to the Chinese communists. Considered a traitor, he spent ten years in a reeducation camp until he was declared reformed. He voiced his support for the Communists and worked at the Beijing Botanical Gardens.
This film vividly portrays the change from the imperial and religious traditions of ancient China to the godless totalitarianism of modern communist China, so the film is, on one level, the story of China's revolutionary transition from imperialism to communism.
Visually the film is stunning especially the scenes in the Forbidden City. It was the first film to receive permission to film in the Forbidden City.
The film can be enjoyed on the first viewing but really demands more than one viewing and some knowledge of history. In this respect it resembles Akira Kurasawa's masterpiece "The Seven Samurai.
The cast includes John Lone as emperor Pu Yi, Joan Chen, and Peter O'Toole.
The film won 9 Oscars including best director and best film. A must see on DVD widescreen or in the theater.