Last Emperor [WS] [Criterion Collection]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

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, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo
• Aspect Ratio: 2.00:1 (Widescreen TV Enhanced)
• Features:
  • Restored High-Definition digital transfer, supervised and approved by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro
  • Audio Commentary featuring Director Bernardo Bertolucci, Producer Jeremy Thomas, Screenwriter Mark Peploe, and Composer-actor Ryuichi Sakamoto
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • Plus: A booklet featuring an essay by critic David Thomson

AWARDS

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

•     Won Best Adapted Screenplay - 1987 (Mark Peploe, Bernardo Bertolucci)
•     Won Best Art Direction - 1987 (Ferdinando Scarfiotti, Bruno Cesari)
•     Won Best Cinematography - 1987 (Vittorio Storaro)
•     Won Best Costume Design - 1987 (James Acheson)
•     Won Best Director - 1987 (Bernardo Bertolucci)
•     Won Best Editing - 1987 (Gabriella Cristiani)
•     Won Best Picture - 1987 (Jeremy Thomas)
•     Won Best Score - 1987 (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Su Cong, David Byrne)
•     Won Best Sound - 1987 (Bill Rowe, Ivan Sharrock)
•     Nominated Best Art Direction - 1987 (Osvaldo Desideri)

• American Society of Cinematographers

•     Nominated Best Cinematography - 1987 (Vittorio Storaro)

• British Academy of Film and Television Arts

•     Won Best Picture - 1988 (Bernardo Bertolucci)
•     Nominated Best Director - 1988 (Bernardo Bertolucci)

• Directors Guild of America

•     Won Best Director - 1987 (Bernardo Bertolucci)

• European Film Academy

•     Won Special Jury Award - 1988 (Bernardo Bertolucci)

• French Academy of Cinema

•     Won Best Foreign Film - 1987 (Bernardo Bertolucci)

• Hollywood Foreign Press Association

•     Won Best Director - 1987 (Bernardo Bertolucci)
•     Won Best Original Score - 1987 (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Su Cong, David Byrne)
•     Won Best Picture - Drama - 1987
•     Won Best Screenplay - 1987 (Mark Peploe, Bernardo Bertolucci)

• Los Angeles Film Critics Association

•     Won Best Cinematography - 1986 (Vittorio Storaro)
•     Won Best Music Score - 1986 (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Su Cong, David Byrne)

• National Board of Review

•     Nominated Best Picture - 1987

• New York Film Critics Circle

•     Won Best Cinematography - 1987 (Vittorio Storaro)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       John Lone - Pu Yi as an Adult
       Joan Chen - Wan Jung, "Elizabeth"
       Peter O'Toole - Reginald Johnston, "R.J."
       Ying Ruocheng - The Governor
       Victor Wong - Chen Pao Shen
       Dennis Dun - Big Li
       Ryuichi Sakamoto - Masahiko Amakasu
       Maggie Han - Eastern Jewel
       Ric Young - Interrogator
       Cary - Hiroyuki Tagawa - Chang
       Jade Go - Ar Mo
       Fumihiko Ikeda - Yoshioka
       Tiger Tsou - Pu Yi, Age 8
       Fan Guang - Pu Chieh
       Henry Kyi - Pu Chieh, Age 7
       Alvin Riley III - Pu Chieh, Age 14
       Akira Ikuta - Japanese Doctor

• Director:

  Bernardo Bertolucci

• Producer:

  Jeremy Thomas

• Screenwriter:

  Bernardo Bertolucci, Mark Peploe, Enzo Ungari

• Book Author:

  Pu Yi

• Cinematographer:

  Vittorio Storaro

• Composer (Music Score):

  David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Su Cong

• Musical Direction/Supervision:

  Ray Williams

• Editor:

  Gabriella Cristiani

• Production Designer:

  Ferdinando Scarfiotti

• Art Director:

  Maria Teresa Barbasso, Gianni Giovagnoni, Gianni Silvestri

• Associate Producer:

  Joyce Herlihy, Franco Giovale

• Costume Designer:

  James Acheson

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Ivan Sharrock

• Makeup:

  Fabrizio Sforza

• Special Effects:

  Giannetto De Rossi, Gino de Rossi, Fabrizio Martinelli

• Camera Operator:

  Nicola Pecorini

• Casting:

  Joanna Merlin, Ulrike Koch

• Publicist:

  Howard Brandy

REVIEW:

• In this unprecedented Sino-Western co-production, Bernardo Bertolucci turned the strange life of final Chinese crown ruler Pu Yi into a sumptuous epic. Shooting on location in China in the first Western production allowed to film in Beijing's Forbidden City, Bertolucci spent $25 million on lavish sets and costumes, as well as a cast of thousands, for a story spanning six decades, from Pu Yi's 1908 coronation to his 1960s life as a poor civilian. The story is structured through flashback memories as Pu Yi comes to grips with existence as a villain and commoner under Communism, and Vittorio Storaro's exquisite cinematography subtly underscores the emperor's rise and fall by shifting from a palette rich in reds, oranges, and yellows for Pu Yi's imperial years to somber blues and grays for his exile and imprisonment. Despite critical complaints that the story was lacking in emotional involvement, many viewers agreed that Bertolucci had created another visual marvel. Nominated for nine Oscars, The Last Emperor scored an unexpected sweep, winning all nine, including Best Picture and Best Director. An hour of footage cut from the release version was restored in the 1998 theatrical reissue reedited by Bertolucci. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi