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 scope of the film was, and remains, undeniably powerful—the life of Emperor Puyi, who took the throne in 1908, at age three, 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.
Details by Film
The Last Emperor
Theatrical VersionThe Last Emperor
Extended VersionStreaming Options
Release Information:
Technical Specifications
Supplements
- Audio commentary featuring director Bernardo Bertolucci, producer Jeremy Thomas, screenwriter Mark Peploe, and composer-actor Ryuichi Sakamoto
- 218-minute television version [Hi-Def Only]
- The Italian Traveler, Bernardo Bertolucci, a film by Fernand Moszkowicz tracing the director’s geographic influences, from Parma to China
- Footage taken by Bertolucci while on preproduction in China
- The Chinese Adventure of Bernardo Bertolucci, a 52-minute documentary that revisits the film’s making
- A 66-minute BBC documentary exploring Bertolucci’s creative process and the making of The Last Emperor
- Program featuring cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, editor Gabriella Cristiani, costume designer James Acheson, and art director Gianni Silvestri
- Archival interview with Bernardo Bertolucci
- Interview with composer David Byrne
- Interview with cultural historian Ian Buruma
- Trailer
- An essay by film critic David Thomson, interviews with production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti and actor Ying Ruocheng, a reminiscence by Bernardo Bertolucci, and an essay by Fabien S. Gerard