powerful and moving

Rating: 10/10 (16 May 2006)

Steven Spielberg's THE EMPIRE OF THE SUN is a powerful film from start to finish. Smartly written by Tom Stoppard, "EMPIRE" tells the story of a rich British boy who is separated from his family when the Japenese invaded Shanghai. He wanders, but is captured by the Japanese who throw him in a POW camp where he meets a group of captured soldiers whom he bonds with. The story is involving and sprawlingly beautiful. Spielberg shows he is at the top of his game and directs this film with style and elegance and the acting is first rate. It deserved more attention at Oscar time but at least it gave Christian Bale his start in Hollywood. John Williams score is terrific as it captures the chaos of war but the beauty of human nature and the will to survive. THE EMPIRE OF THE SUN is one of my all time favorite films. **** stars out of 4.