The Last Emperor

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The Last Emperor

PG-13,

1987,

2h 42m,

Biography/

History/

Drama

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Watchlist

86%

125 Reviews

Tomatometer

88%

25,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

125 Reviews

88%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

This sweeping account of the life of Pu Yi (John Lone), the last emperor of China, follows the leader's tumultuous reign. After being captured by the Red Army as a war criminal in 1950, Pu Yi recalls his childhood from prison. He remembers his lavish youth in the Forbidden City, where he was afforded every luxury but unfortunately sheltered from the outside world and complex political situation surrounding him. As revolution sweeps through China, the world Pu Yi knew is dramatically upended.

Critics Consensus

While Bernardo Bertolucci's decadent epic never quite identifies the dramatic pulse of its protagonist, stupendous visuals and John Lone's ability to make passivity riveting give The Last Emperor a rarified grandeur.

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Pauline Kael

The New Yorker

Sep 15, 2023

Bertolucci makes pretty pictorial music, but two hours and forty-six minutes is a long time for a movie to dance. Maybe it wouldn't be if his sense of rhythm hadn't become erratic.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

Feb 17, 2023

4/5

Yet there’s also a great sadness in the film, as it tracks Puyi, the emperor of the title (played by four actors at different ages), through a state of permanent lifelong imprisonment, from gilded cage to Red Army capture.

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Peter Rainer

Los Angeles Herald Examiner

Aug 8, 2022

When this film really sings, it's as if Bertolucci had tapped the wellspring of cinema and, ecstatic, discovered the eroticism at its essence.

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Richard Freedman

Newark Star-Ledger

Jan 14, 2026

3/4

As a resplendently gorgeous historical pageant of China in the 20th century, The Last Emperor is, visually at least, the most beautiful movie in years. But as an involving human drama about Pu Yi... it doggedly refuses to come to much dramatic life.

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James Kendrick

Q Network Film Desk

Sep 3, 2024

3.5/4

Moreso than most historical epics, we feel the real pull of history and the whiplash of violent social change, but most of all the steady march of life.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Aug 20, 2024

3.5/4

This is no dull, dusty biopic that’s forced to solely fall back on its good looks.

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Hagrid M

Apr 9, 2019

how could that cricket stay alive in a jar all those years? don't chinese crickets require any amount of care

Finn R

Apr 4, 2019

Visually stunning with its shot and costumes but it's extremely slow and dragged out.

Poe P

Mar 4, 2019

One of the best movies ever, I do not know how it's not better rated; Almost everything in this movie is good, the actors, the story, the soundtrack, the sound mix, the effects, everything, the only part I did not like was the fact that after the middle of the movie, the movie comesa to become a bit annoying, but still quite interesting and with a wonderful ending. Highly recommend.

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Feb 1, 2019

The best, GREATEST epic movie ever made!

Leia L

Jan 14, 2019

Wish this movie could be shot in Chinese, lost of a lot of substances when the fucking emperor of China speaks English. But overall, one of my favorites of all time

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Albus W

Nov 13, 2018

This film was great.

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Bernardo Bertolucci

Director

John Lone

Emperor (Henry) Pu Yi

Joan Chen

Empress (Elizabeth) Wan Jung

Peter O'Toole

Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston

Ying Ruocheng

The Governor

Victor Wong

Chen Pao Shen

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Synopsis

This sweeping account of the life of Pu Yi (John Lone), the last emperor of China, follows the leader's tumultuous reign. After being captured by the Red Army as a war criminal in 1950, Pu Yi recalls his childhood from prison. He remembers his lavish youth in the Forbidden City, where he was afforded every luxury but unfortunately sheltered from the outside world and complex political situation surrounding him. As revolution sweeps through China, the world Pu Yi knew is dramatically upended.

Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
Producer: Jeremy Thomas
Screenwriter: Mark Peploe, Bernardo Bertolucci, Henry Pu-yi
Distributor: Columbia Pictures, Artisan Entertainment
Production Co: Hemdale Studios, Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Biography, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 18, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 15, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $43.0M
Runtime: 2h 42m
Sound Mix: Surround

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