Product Details

• Actors: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole
• Directors: Bernardo Bertolucci
• Format: NTSC, Color, Director's Cut, Anamorphic, Import
• Subtitles: English, Korean
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Dawoori
• Run Time: 218 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000NSQ13O
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #161,021 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

A stunning milestone in the history of cinema, this is director Bernardo Bertolucci's original director's cut, presented for the first time on video, the way it was meant to be seen. John Lone stars as Pu Yi, emperor of China, who comes from a long history of a tradition that is irreversibly altered by two world wars and fierce political upheaval. Guided by his English mentor, Pu Yi is forced to leave the lavish, protective walls of his kingdom and somehow find the strength to build a new life in a strange world he has always longed to explored, but has never really known.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the DVD edition that was meant to be, November 5, 2007

By 

Patrick Courtney (Houston, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor : Director's Cut [Import, All-region] (Dvd) (DVD)

My comments are solely on this edition, please see my review of the Region 1 edition for the content. The mastering of the Region 1 edition was absolutely terrible. Whoever was in charge should lose their job. My copy of the Korean important just arrived today, and just in the first 45 minutes I can tell a vast improvement. The picture is every bit as rich and crisp as a DVD should be (except for the scenes where the cinematographer apparently wanted things to look dreamy), and the sound is extremely well done. Throw away whatever region 1 copies you have and buy this edition if you want to own a copy of a movie classic that swept the Oscars.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best films on China, April 13, 2008

By 

Peter Kono (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor : Director's Cut [Import, All-region] (Dvd) (DVD)

Bertolucci's film details the life of the last Emperor of China (HIM Aisin-Gioro P'u-yi, the Hsuan-t'ung Emperor b.1906-1967) who died during the "Cultural Revolution" in China. His film is superbly balanced between the tragedy of the last Emperor against the backdrop of the upheavals of the 20th century in China. It was filmed on location in the Forbidden City in Peking, and Bertolucci was even allowed by the communist authorities to open up some of the warehouses to furnish authentic period costumes and sets.One of the best films about the subject. This film won Best Picture during the Academy Awards in 1987 in Hollywood.
Also the movie has a haunting musical score.

(See the books "The Last Emperor" by NJ Irons for a more serious discussion. Also, see RE Johnston's book "Twilight in the Forbidden City". Johnston was one of His tutors, 1919-1924).

I only wish someone can do a similar movie about the last Russian Emperor/Tsar Nicholas II.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Unjustly Forgotten Classic, December 7, 2007

By 

Notnadia (Currently upstairs.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor : Director's Cut [Import, All-region] (Dvd) (DVD)

Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor has never looked better than in this release, in this format. One of the grandest, most spectacular productions of the 1980's is today mostly forgotten, and that's more than a shame, it's unforgivable. This telling of the story of the final emperor of China, from his boyhood at the tradition-bound court in the Forbidden City, to his pro-western "playboy" years, to his final, once-unimaginable re-emergence under Maoist rule as a humble gardener in Peking, a reconditioned, obedient servant of the People's Republic is far stranger than any fiction. This masterpiece is worthy of greater recognition than it enjoys today, and if you have to see it on the small screen, this is the version to see.