Empire of the Sun (1987)

• Year: 1987
• Released: 25 Dec 1987
• Country: United States
• Adwords: Nominated for 6 Oscars. 13 wins & 17 nominations total
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092965/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Empire_of_the_Sun
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/empire-of-the-sun
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English, Japanese, Mandarin, Shanghainese
• MPA Rating: PG
• Genre: Drama, History, War
• Runtime: 153 min
• Writer: Tom Stoppard, J.G. Ballard, Menno Meyjes
• Director: Steven Spielberg
• Cast: Christian Bale, John Malkovich, Miranda Richardson
• Keywords: based on novel or book, coming of age, prisoner of war, children in wartime, shanghai, china,

	7.7/10
	62/100
	75% – Critics
	90% – Audience

Empire of the Sun Storyline

1941. The Japanese are occupying much of China in the Sino-Japanese War. Diplomatic security protects the International Settlement in Shanghai, the many westerners there still leading a very comfortable, western-styled life. Twelve year old Briton Jamie Graham, the son of a mill owner, has lived his entire life in the International Settlement, that life one of wealth and privilege. As such, Jamie, an airplane aficionado, is a spoiled child, who has not even learned Chinese, expecting any natives with who he deals, including the household domestics, to speak English. That comfortable life changes with the Japanese entry into WWII through the attack at Pearl Harbor. Simultaneously, the Japanese overtake the Settlement, including all its private property, forcing its western residents to evacuate immediately. It is through Jamie’s self-absorption that he becomes separated from his parents during the evacuation, he, now alone, needing to fend for himself for the first time in his life. It is during this time if Jamie will grow up and learn to live within the new tenuous situation that he will either live or die, life which he hopes will mean eventually being reunited with his parents sometime down the road.

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Empire of the Sun Movie Reviews

A misfire….though a nice looking misfire.

Like so many of Steven Spielberg’s films, this one received a butt-load of Oscar nominations–but no wins (“Empire of the Sun” was nominated for six technical awards).

The movie begins with a VERY young Christian Bale playing a bratty and rather annoying child of British nationals living very well in war-torn China just before the British and Americans were pulled into this war. Like too many westerners, his family seemed to care very little about the war or the Chinese people so it feels a bit like karma when the war does come and the child is separated from his parents when Shanghai is invaded. For the rest of the film, the child grows up a scrounger–eking out a survival in a Japanese-run internment camp. Life is miserable and the film VERY episodic–as it jumps very quickly from December, 1941 to 1945–with nothing in-between.

While the film has many glowing reviews, I couldn’t help but feel extremely disconnected from the movie. Part of it, as I mentioned above, is the episodic quality of the film. Part of it is because Christian Bale’s character is amazingly tough to like. Initially, he’s a really annoying kid. Later, he’s not as bad but with the ENTIRE film resting on young Bale’s shoulders, it just becomes tedious. In fact, this VERY slow pacing is the biggest problem with the film, as about 30 minutes could have been sliced out of it OR they could have developed more of the adult characters. Regardless, I really couldn’t wait for this technically astounding but very dull film to end.

A visual masterpiece, very moving and thought-provoking and Christian Bale is extraordinary

I do like a vast majority of Steven Spielberg’s movies, and Empire of the Sun I feel is one of his best, alongside Schindler’s List, ET, Jaws, Jurassic Park and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Spielberg’s direction is superb, and there is a thoughtful script and very touching story. Empire of the Sun also has characters that I personally did care for, pacing that didn’t feel too rushed and glacial and the acting from the likes of Miranda Richardson, Nigel Havers and John Malkovich is truly terrific. Three assets especially stand out. Empire of the Sun like all of Spielberg’s movies is a triumph when it comes to visuals, the cinematography, lighting, scenery and effects are all lovingly crafted. John Williams’ score is also fantastic and enhances the drama, not his most iconic of his scores, that would be a three-way tie between Jaws, Schindler’s List and ET, it serves its purpose very well. Lastly, Christian Bale is absolutely extraordinary in this film, I do like him very much as an actor, but I don’t think I have ever seen him this powerful or poignant. Overall, a wonderful movie and one of my personal favourites from Spielberg. 10/10 Bethany Cox

A great adventure for a child

I can see that a tale told from a child’s point of view how it would stir the imagination of one Steven Spielberg. Empire Of The Sun is a really imaginative story of a young boy stuck in World War II China in a truly terrible situation cut off from his parents. Yet young Christian Bale turns the whole thing gradually into an adventure of sorts.

Up to the age of 11 young Bale has lived in the British quarter of Shanghai and in fact has never seen the United Kingdom, his father Rupert Frazer owns a textile factory. Bale and his parents live in luxury among the millions of Chinese.

What one should remember when watching Empire Of The Sun is that since the Opium War of 1841 western powers and Japan joined them took small little nibbles out of China and in fact were granted by the weak Chinese governments special treatment in their quarters. Frazer, Emily Richard his wife and young Bale lived under British law and did not answer to the Chinese. The other powers did the same, even the USA had its own quarter in Shanghai as well as other large Chinese cities. That only ended with the Communist takeover in 1949.

It ended a bit prematurely for the west in 1941 when the Japanese attacked America, Great Britain, the Netherlands. That’s when Bale’s well ordered world falls apart.

I had to marvel at how when Bale came home and the parents were gone and some looting had occurred how his reactions were. Without any dialog Bale runs through a gamut of emotions. Great job of acting and directing.

Later on Bale is rounded up and taken to an internment camp next to an airfield. Fascinating how Bale who had an interest in aviation looks at the Japanese planes and become almost worshipful of the enemy. He even makes friend with some of the Japanese, a group not known for treating prisoners well in World War II.

Joe Pantoliano and John Malkovich are a pair of American adventurers, no better than they ought to be. They’re caught along with Bale and sent to the internment camp. Our adult eyes see them as a pair of bottom feeders. But we see them through the child’s eyes also and they become sort of devil may care rogues that one reads in pulp fiction the kind Bale no doubt read.

Steven Spielberg did a marvelous job of recreating wartime China and it certainly helped to shoot the film there. Just part of the People’s Republic’s post Mao entry into the community of nations.

The adult performers are fine. Empire Of The Sun got a flock of Oscar nominations in technical categories, no gold though. But it did inaugurate the career of Christian Bale who’s done pretty well for himself as an adult actor too.

This one is highly recommended for its realism and encouragement of imagination.