from old China to modern China

Rating: 10/10 (11 July 2015)

Bernardo Bertolucci's sweeping epic "The Last Emperor" is mostly a look at the life of Puyi, whose reign witnessed massive political changes in China. Like Steven Spielberg's "Empire of the Sun", released around the same time, the movie helps one understand why modern China is like it is. The story gets told as a flashback, with the imprisoned Puyi remembering the different stages of his life. The Communists charge him with collaborating with the Japanese occupation of Manchuria, but this new government has become just as bad. There has been no change in China's politics from the imperial era to the republican era to the communist era. As emperor, Puyi was confined to the Forbidden City, and now he suffers a new kind of confinement.
Bertolucci makes use of colors the same way that Stanley Kubrick did, adding up to a most impressive movie. It won nine well deserved Academy Awards including Best Picture. John Lone puts all his effort into the role of Puyi, and has fine support from Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Victor Wong and others. It's over two and a half hours, but it's worth the effort so that you can understand how the world's most populous country ended up like it is today. Watch this one and Spielberg's movie.