The Last Emperor

The Last Emperor, historical epic film, released in 1987, that was directed by Bernardo Bertolucci and told the story of Puyi (Pu Yi in the film), the last emperor of the Qing (Manchu) dynasty in China. The movie garnered nine Academy Awards, including that for best picture.

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The movie begins in 1950 with the arrival of Pu Yi (played by John Lone) at a prison in China, where he attempts suicide but is revived by the prison governor (Ruocheng Ying). The story then unfolds as a series of flashbacks intercut with scenes of Pu Yi’s reeducation. In 1908, at the age of three, Pu Yi (Richard Vuu) is summoned to the Forbidden City by the Empress Dowager (Lisa Lu), who declares him emperor. The confused child undergoes a coronation ceremony and is introduced to the hundreds of palace eunuchs and maids who are to wait upon him. The only familiar figure is his nurse, Ar Mo (Jade Go). By the time Pu Yi is eight years old (now played by Tsou Tijger), he has gotten used to court life. His family arrives, and, though he no longer remembers them, his seven-year-old brother, Pu Chieh (Henry Kyi), remains in the Forbidden City to be a playmate and companion to the emperor. After a revolution overthrows the Qing dynasty, Pu Yi learns that he is the emperor only of the Forbidden City; outside of those walls, China is now a republic. In 1919 the Scotsman Reginald F. Johnston (Peter O’Toole) becomes the tutor of Pu Yi (Tao Wu), and he provides Pu Yi with information about the world outside the Forbidden City. He gives his charge a bicycle, on which Pu Yi attempts to escape the grounds. In 1922 a wife, Wan Jung (Joan Chen), is chosen for Pu Yi (now played by Lone), and he also takes a secondary wife, Wen Hsiu (Jun Wu).

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In 1924 Pu Yi and all the other occupants are ordered to leave the Forbidden City. He and his wives take up residence in the Japanese-occupied area within Tianjin, where they enjoy a relaxed and cosmopolitan lifestyle. Pu Yi becomes known as Henry and Wan Jung as Elizabeth. Sometime after Johnston returns to the West, Pu Yi travels to the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo in Manchuria, and in 1934 he is installed as emperor of that state, though he is just a pawn of Japan. After a trip to Tokyo, Pu Yi is required to sign an edict appointing a new prime minister, and Wan Jung is sent away. In 1945, after the fall of Japan in World War II, Pu Yi is captured by Russian troops. Intercut with the flashbacks, the prisoner Pu Yi learns for the first time in his life to take care of his own personal needs, and he renounces his cooperation with the Japanese. He is released in 1959 and becomes a gardener. Later, in 1967 during the Cultural Revolution, he sees a parade in which the former prison governor who helped him with his rehabilitation is being humiliated as an enemy of the revolution. In the final scenes, Pu Yi visits the Forbidden City as a tourist, and 20 years later a tour guide leads American tourists into the palace’s throne room.

The Last Emperor was based on Puyi’s autobiography, From Emperor to Citizen (published in English in 1964–65). It was the first feature film permitted to be filmed inside the Forbidden City. The movie was well received by critics in spite of its having extremely limited distribution in the United States prior to winning the Academy Awards.

Production notes and credits

• Studios: Recorded Picture Company, Hemdale, Yanco Films Limited, TAO Film, Screenframe, and AAA Soprofilms
• Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
• Writers: Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci (screenplay)
• Music: David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Cong Su
• Cinematography: Vittorio Storaro

Cast

• John Lone (Pu Yi as an adult)
• Joan Chen (Wan Jung)
• Peter O’Toole (Reginald Johnston)
• Ruocheng Ying (prison governor)
• Ryuichi Sakamoto (Amakasu)
• Maggie Han (Eastern Jewel)
• Vivian Wu (Wen Hsiu)

Academy Award nominations (* denotes win)

• Picture*
• Art direction*
• Cinematography*
• Costume design*
• Direction*
• Editing*
• Music*
• Sound*
• Writing*