How The Last Emperor opened doors for more China co-productions and offered a balanced view of its complicated past
- Bernardo Bertolucci’s 1987 epic was the first to be made with the Chinese government’s support, and the first allowed to shoot inside Beijing’s Forbidden City
- It portrayed the life of China’s last monarch, Puyi, and has been hailed for its frank insights on the political history of China
Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (1987) is a film of many firsts.
An epic drama about the life of China’s last monarch, Puyi (1906-1967), it was the first Western movie to explore modern Chinese politics in detail; the first to be made with the Chinese government’s support; and the first allowed to shoot inside Beijing’s Forbidden City.
It also won Oscars for all nine of the categories in which it was nominated, a record only beaten by The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, which won 11 out of 11 in 2003.
Although not an official co-production – the US$25 million budget was raised independently by producer Jeremy Thomas from outside China – the film pioneered a mode of international cooperation that would flourish in years to come.