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The Last Emperor Details

1987 Certificate 15 Certificate 15
  • 70
  • from 7945 members

The Last Emperor is the true story of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi, the last ruler of the Chinese Ching Dynasty. Told in flashback, the film covers the years 1908 to 1967. We first see the three-year-old Pu Yi being installed in the Forbidden City by ruthless, dying dowager Empress Tzu-Hsui (Lisa Lu). Though he'd prefer to lark about like .. Read more

Starring John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Dennis Dun
Director Bernardo Bertolucci
Genres Drama, World Cinema

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The Last Emperor

The Last Emperor is the true story of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi, the last ruler of the Chinese Ching Dynasty. Told in flashback, the film covers the years 1908 to 1967. We first see the three-year-old Pu Yi being installed in the Forbidden City by ruthless, dying dowager Empress Tzu-Hsui (Lisa Lu). Though he'd prefer to lark about like other boys, the infant emperor is cossetted and cajoled into accepting the responsibilities and privileges of his office. In 1912, the young emperor (Tijer Tsou) forced to abdicate when China is declared a republic, is a prisoner in his own palace, protected from the outside world. Fascinated by the worldliness of his Scottish tutor (Peter O'Toole), Pu Yi plots an escape from his cocoon by means of marriage. He selects Manchu descendant Wan Jung (Joan Chen), who likewise is anxious to experience the 20th century rather than be locked into the past by tradition. Played as an adult by John Lone, Pu Yi puts into effect several social reforms, and also clears the palace of the corrupt eunuchs who've been shielding him from life. In 1924, an invading warlord expels the denizens of the Forbidden City, allowing Pu Yi to westernize himself by embracing popular music and the latest dances as a guest of the Japanese Concession in Tientsin. Six years later, his power all but gone, Pu Yi escapes to Manchuria, where he unwittingly becomes a political pawn for the now-militant Japanese government. Humiliating his faithful wife, Pu Yi falls into bad romantic company, carrying on affairs with a variety of parasitic females. During World War II, the Japanese force Pu Yi to sign a series of documents which endorse their despotic military activities. At war's end, the emperor is taken prisoner by the Russians; while incarcerated, he is forced to fend for himself without servants at his beck and call for the first time. He is finally released in 1959 and displayed publicly as proof of the efficacy of Communist re-education. We last see him in 1967, the year of his death; now employed by the State as a gardener, Pu Yi makes one last visit to the Forbidden City...as a tourist. Bernardo Bertolucci's first film after a six-year self-imposed exile, The Last Emperor was released in two separate versions: the 160-minute theatrical release, and a 4-hour TV miniseries. Lensed on location, the film won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Starring John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Dennis Dun, Victor Wong, Ryuichi Sakamato, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Director Bernardo Bertolucci
Studio SECOND SIGHT FILMS LTD.
Run time DVD: 2 hrs 36 mins
Blu-ray: 2 hrs 40 mins
LOVEFiLM Instant: 2 hrs 36 mins
Certificate Certificate 15 DVD
Certificate 15 LOVEFiLM Instant
Collections 100 Swords and Sandals Films, Best Picture Oscar Winners
Genres Drama, World Cinema
Language DVD: English
Blu-ray: English
LOVEFiLM Instant: English, Mandarin, Japanese, Russian
Subtitles LOVEFiLM Instant: English
Released Production year: 1987

To Watch Online:
LOVEFiLM Instant: 08 Apr 2011

To Rent:
DVD: 18 Oct 1999
Blu-ray: 19 Apr 2010
Watch now Included in all packages with LOVEFiLM Instant. Subscribe.

The Last Emperor (1987)

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    The story of Pu Yi, who ascended to the Imperial Throne in China at the age of three and became the country’s ...

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7,945 Member ratings
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730
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1,754
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1,391
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679
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345
  • 30
216
  • 20
165
  • 10
78

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    • The Last Emperor - Blu-ray

    • The Last Emperor - Blu-ray
      The story of Pu Yi, who ascended to the Imperial Throne in China at the age of three and became the country's last Emperor. Although it is 160 minutes long and shot with breathtaking scope and sumptuousness, Bernardo Bertolucci's film is a story about claustrophobia. Pu Yi is a prisoner in the ...
    • The Last Emperor

    • The Last Emperor
      The Last Emperor is the true story of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi, the last ruler of the Chinese Ching Dynasty. Told in flashback, the film covers the years 1908 to 1967. We first see the three-year-old Pu Yi being installed in the Forbidden City by ruthless, dying dowager Empress Tzu-Hsui (Lisa Lu). Though ...

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