Picture 60: The Last Emperor (1987)

The 60^th Best Picture takes us to 20^th century China. Bernardo Bertolucci’s historical drama follows the life of Puyi, the 11^th monarch of the Qing dynasty and the last emperor of China. This was the first ever western film permitted to be filmed in Beijing’s Forbidden City and it won an impressive 9 Oscars. Can it still live up to the hype 38 years on?

We meet the infant Emperor Puyi in 1908. Born into the most decadent of environments, he has unusual privileges for somebody under 3 feet tall. He is surrounded by servants, wet nurses and eunuchs who are bound to do exactly as he says. Sometimes this leads to bizarre scenes all around. However, the glory days don’t last for Puyi and he is soon overthrown by republicans, losing his unilateral power in the process.

Over the next few decades, he goes on arguably the most remarkable journey of any main character in the history of cinema. A journey that includes exile and being a Soviet prisoner of war as well as a puppet ruler for Imperial Japan. As you might imagine, there is a lot of suffering and brutality along the way and this biographical saga takes you through all of it in a pulsating 2 hours and 43 minutes.

This picture is easy on the eye, has a plot as dramatic as 20^th century history and is backed up by strong performances all around including a supporting role for Peter O’Toole as Puyi’s British tutor. The Last Emperor doesn’t shy away from the potential for depravity in human nature but still it manages to find glimmers of hope and happiness along the way. It comfortably makes the top 20.

Rating: 9/10

Oscar Best Picture Rankings:

1. The Godfather (1972)

2. Casablanca (1943)

3. The Apartment (1960)

4. Rebecca (1940)

5. The Godfather: Part II (1974)

6. The Sound of Music (1965)

7. Ordinary People (1980)

8. The Deer Hunter (1978)

9. A Man for All Seasons (1966)

10. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

11. Ben-Hur (1959)

12. The Last Emperor (1987)

13. Lost Weekend (1945)

14. Platoon (1986)

15. Gandhi (1982)

16. Rocky (1976)

17. Annie Hall (1977)

18. Amadeus (1984)

19. All About Eve (1950)

20. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

21. Hamlet (1948)

22. How Green Was My Valley (1941)

23. Out of Africa (1985)

24. Gone With the Wind (1939)

25. West Side Story (1961)

26. Mrs. Miniver (1942)

27. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

28. Wings (1928)

29. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

30. You can’t take it with you (1938)

31. Patton (1970)

32. Terms of Endearment (1983)

33. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

34. On the Waterfront (1954)

35. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

36. Midnight Cowboy (1969)

37. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

38. Marty (1955)

39. Oliver! (1968)

40. Cimarron (1931)

41. Grand Hotel (1932)

42. The French Connection (1971)

43. An American in Paris (1951)

44. From Here to Eternity (1953)

45. It Happened One Night (1934)

46. My Fair Lady (1964)

47. Gentleman’s Agreement (1947)

48. Cavalcade (1933)

49. The Sting (1973)

50. The Life of Emile Zola (1937)

51. Going My Way (1944)

52. The Great Ziegfeld (1936)

53. Chariots of Fire (1981)

54. All the King’s Men (1949)

55. In the Heat of the Night (1967)

56. Gigi (1958)

57. Around the World in 80 Days (1956)

58. The Greatest Show on Earth (1952)

59. The Broadway Melody (1929)

60. Tom Jones (1963)

Previous or current ranking leaders are in bold.

With credit and thanks to the patrons of the Best Picture Film Club:

Dr Sophie Bloomfield – Fashion Correspondent

Dr Caspar Briault – Head of Cynicism

Dr Conrad Charlton

Dr Sophie Clarke

Dr Kate Diomede

Dr Fionnuala Durrant

Dr Josh Fisher

Dr Joseph Gallaher – CEO and Founder

Dr Joseph Hamilton

Dr Adam Holland – Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Dr Sid Mohan - Divisional Lead for the 1980s

Dr Hannah Morrison

Dr Meera Radia