Fiction

THE LAST EMPEROR

Bernardo Bertolucci
China, GBR, I, FRA 1987
163 min
V'11

Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor won nine Academy Awards, unexpectedly sweeping every category in which it was nominated – quite a feat for a challenging, multilayered epic directed by an Italian and starring an international cast. Yet the power and scope of the film was, and remains, undeniable – the life of Emperor Pu Yi, who took the throne at age three, in 1908, before witnessing decades of cultural and political upheaval, within and without the walls of the Forbidden City. Recreating Qing dynasty China with astonishing detail and unparalleled craftsmanship by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro and production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti, The Last Emperor is also an intimate character study of one man reconciling personal responsibility and political legacy. (The Criterion Collection)

Credits
  • John Lone - Pu Yi
  • Joan Chen - Wan Jung
  • Peter O’Toole - Reginald Johnston
  • Victor Wong - Chen Pao Shen
  • Dennis Dun - Big Li
  • Vivian Wu - Wen Hsiu
  • Ruocheng Ying - The Governor
  • Sakamoto Ryuichi - Amakasu
  • Bernardo Bertolucci
  • Mark Peploe
  • Vittorio Storaro
  • Les Wiggins
  • Gabriella Cristiana
  • Anthony Sloman
  • Sakamoto Ryuichi
  • David Byrne
  • Cong Su
  • Ferdinando Scarfiotti
  • James Acheson
Recorded Picture Company, Yanco Films, TAO Film, Hemdale Film, Screen frame, AAA Soprofilms
HanWay Films
35 mm
col
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