Empire of the Sun (1987) - IMDb
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Empire of the Sun ( 1987 )
PG |
A young English boy struggles to survive under Japanese occupation during World War II.
Director:
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Title: Empire of the Sun (1987)
7.8/10
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Nominated for         6         Oscars. Another       12 wins & 10 nominations. See more awards  »
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Storyline
Based on J. G. Ballard's autobiographical novel, tells the story of a boy, James Graham, whose privileged life is upturned by the Japanese invasion of Shanghai, December 8, 1941. Separated from his parents, he is eventually captured, and taken to Soo Chow confinement camp, next to a captured Chinese airfield. Amidst the sickness and food shortages in the camp, Jim attempts to reconstruct his former life, all the while bringing spirit and dignity to those around him. Written by Jeff Hansen <jmh@umich.edu>
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Taglines:
To survive in a world at war, he must find a strength greater than all the events that surround him.
Genres:
25 December 1987 (USA) See more  »
Also Known As:
El imperio del sol See more  »
Filming Locations:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)| Dolby (35 mm prints)
Color:
Did You Know?
Trivia
Mark Rylance was offered a part but took a stage role instead. He would work with Spielberg nearly 28 years later in Bridge of Spies. See more »
Goofs
The model airplanes that Jim set on fire are plastic models by AURORA. These models were not released until 1957, some 16 years after the story takes place. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Narrator: [title card] In 1941 China and Japan had been in a state of undeclared war for four years. A Japanese army of occupation was in control of much of the countryside and many towns and cities. In Shanghai thousands of Westerners, protected by the diplomatic security of the International Settlement, continued to live as they had lived since the British came here in the 19th century and built in the image of their own country... built banking houses, hotels, offices, churches and homes ...
(Sacramento, CA) – See all my reviews
Reading through the reviews, there were a lot of people who didn't understand this film.  This is Spielberg's venture into the realm of art in cinematography.  This film is a visual masterpiece and you are swept along from beginning to end.  Yes, the tale gets a bit loose in spots and you never know what's going to happen next.  But, if you're willing to give up warm and fuzzy for lush visual images and startling leaps of character, you'll see what Spielberg's trying to accomplish.  This film makes use of the talents of Miranda Richardson and gives some early exposure to the likes of John Malkovich and Ben Stiller, but young Christian Bale steals the show. The reviewer that commented on the "gothic" effect of the Tai-Pan's going to the costume ball being driven through Shanghai was right on.  This film is rife with such scenes and does not disappoint.  It's wholly misleading to look for some kind of action story underlying this film.  The tale, taken from the book, is straightforward enough:  a young boy's boost into manhood through the second world war.  The film is full of memorable moments and visually very, very pleasing.  As art, it is excellent.  That's likely why it wasn't a blockbuster, as say, e.g., Poltergeist, Close Encounters and the Jurassic Park films, were.  But, hey.  That's the cost of creating art as opposed to crap. And, crap does draw a lot of flies...
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