I Just Watched… The Last Emperor & Raise the Red Lantern

--by Hanje Richards

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I recently watched two visually stunning movies, both set in historical China.

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The Last Emperor is a 1987 biopic about the life of Pǔyí, the last Emperor of China. Pǔyí's life is depicted from his ascent to the throne as a small boy to his imprisonment and "political rehabilitation" by the Chinese Communist authorities.

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The film opens in 1950 with Pǔyí's re-entry into the just-proclaimed People's Republic of China as a prisoner and war criminal, having been captured by the Red Army when the Soviet Union entered the Pacific War in 1945.

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The next section of the film is a series of chronological flashbacks showing Pǔyí's early life: from his royal upbringing, to the tumultuous period of the early Chinese Republic, to his subsequent exile, to his Japanese-supported puppet reign of Manchukuo, and then his capture by the Russian army – all of which are intermixed with flash-forwards portraying his prison life.

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The concluding section of the film ends with a flash-forward to the mid-1960s during the Mao years and the beginning of the Cultural Revolution. Released from prison as a "reformed citizen," Pǔyí has become a gardener who lives a proletarian existence.

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Raise the Red Lantern is set in the 1920s and tells the story of a young woman who becomes one of the concubines of a wealthy man during the Warlord Era. It is noted for its opulent visuals and sumptuous use of colors. The film was shot in Qiao's Compound in the ancient city of Pingyao, in Shanxi Province. Although the screenplay was approved by Chinese censors, the final version of the film was banned in China for a period.

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Nineteen-year-old Songlian marries into the wealthy Chen family, becoming the fourth wife or rather the third concubine — or, as she is referred to, the Fourth Mistress — of the household. Arriving at the palatial abode, she is at first treated like royalty, receiving sensuous foot massages and brightly-lit red lanterns, as well as a visit from her husband, Master Chen, the master of the house, whose face is never clearly shown.

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Songlian soon discovers, however, that not all the concubines in the household receive the same luxurious treatment. In fact, the master decides on a daily basis the concubine he will spend the night with; whomever he chooses gets her lanterns lit, receives the foot massage, gets her choice of menu items at mealtime, and gets the most attention and respect from the servants. Pitted in constant competition against each other, the three concubines are continually vying for their husband's attention and affections.

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Both movies offer a look at pre-Communist China at its most opulent and grand, as well as life for those less fortunate. They are both beautifully filmed, with lots of attention to detail. I recommend both of them. The Last Emperor is very long (over 160 minutes), and Raise the Red Lantern is in Chinese with English subtitles, so if either of those are movie-watching deal-breakers for you, you have been warned!