Film > World Cinema - Contemporary

Bernardo Bertolucci’s masterpiece won nine Oscars (including Best Picture and Best Director), and remains one of the greatest historical dramas ever put to film. This sweeping cinematic spectacle follows the tumultuous life of Pu Yi, the last Chinese emperor, from his elite origins in the Forbidden City – where a new English tutor (Peter O'Toole) opens the boy's mind to the outside world – to his forced abdication in 1912 and his return to the throne under Japanese rule. Inextricably intertwined with the history of modern-day China, the story ends with the once-privilege emperor living a working-class life under communist rule. Both the Original Theatrical Version (160mins) and Director’s Cut (220mins) - completely re-edited by Bertolucci himself - are presented here on stunning new digital prints that spectacularly capture the film’s exquisite colours and detail.