LAST EMPEROR, THE: DVD

SYNOPSIS:
In the first years of the 20th century, China is ruled by Dowager Empress Tzu Hsui (Lisa Lu) of the Chi'ing Dynatsy, who has imprisoned the nominal emperor, Kuang Hsu, for conspiring against her. On her deathbed the empress names 3 year old young P'u Yi -- the son of the imprisoned emperor's brother -- to succeed her. Born on February 7, 1906 in the Forbidden City, the Lord of Ten Thousand Years becomes the absolute monarch of his nation. His life goes through dramatic changes, from being the object of worship by half a billion people to abdication, to his decline and dissolute lifestyle, his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as a gardener at the Botanical Gardens of Peking, called Henry.

Review by Andrew L. Urban:
Bernardo Bertolucci's cinematic biography of Emperor Pu Yi is an astonishing, ravishing and smashing film. For starters, it's a spectacular and true story of a man who lives through extraordinary changes - at the epicentre of them. There is a poetic quality to his life's story that would seem to stretch credulity if made up by writers. And it's a glorious production which won 9 Oscars - that's every major category for which it is eligible. This 2 disc collector's re-issue looks and sounds as glorious as the original big screen version (even in 2.0).

The film opens on the Manchurian-Chinese border in 1950, with the 44 year old Pu Yi (John Lone) returning from Russia as a prisoner of the Chinese Communists. It is one of the lowest points in his life, and the film then jumps back and forth in time as it unravels his amazing story, starting with Peking in 1908.

John Lone is superb as the adult Pu Yi, a role which requires him to explore just about every emotion known to a human being. The entire cast excels under Bertolucci's decisive direction, and we respond to every nuance and every dramatic development, with a superb score as our emotional handrail. Politics and private lives collide as the world around Pu Yi changes.

Watching the sumptuous scenes in the Forbidden City, with its rich colours and extravagant costumes, it may occur to you that only the Italians (production designer and director) could recreate such lavish scenes with explosions of colour and texture. But credit to 3-times Oscar winner James Acheson (from Leicester in England) for the fabulous costumes ... There's enough pomp and ceremony in just the first 30 minutes of the film to satisfy the most demanding palate.

Just one nagging thought, though: I can't help but wonder if Bertolucci and producer Jeremy Thomas were making this film now whether they'd again choose to make it in English (as well as Mandarin and Japanese for certain scenes). Of course it's easier for audiences, but there is always a cultural bump in the representation of non-English stories when the characters speak English. It's something I am sensitive about, but others may not care at all. And certainly it doesn't fatally hinder my enjoyment of this magnificent and haunting film, which plunges us into another world of extremes and subtleties, of great joy and great despair. Some humour, too.

This 2-disc set also includes commentaries and a doco, plus the longer director's cut - longer by 49 minutes - teasing out even more detail of this extraordinary life that had to be cut from the theatrical release to accommodate cinema session schedules.

Published: June 11, 2009