The last emperor: that terrible wide-angle natural light

Jake 2021-12-08 08:01:48


"The Last Emperor" has created several firsts in the history of Chinese film and television: the first feature film (not an expansion film) set in the Forbidden City, and the scene was completely cleared and the guardrail was removed. Later, in Zheng Shaoqiu's "Joking About Qianlong", You can clearly see that the front gate of the Hall of Supreme Harmony behind Qianlong is blocked by iron bars. Bertolucci tells the story of China for the first time (and only time). Moreover, this is the first time a film about China has won an Oscar. Out of Xu's respect for the master, for the first time the Chinese did not impose any restrictions on the content of the movie.

Perhaps it was Bertolucci's identity as an Italian Communist that helped him?

The movie is 2 hours and 35 minutes long.

It’s difficult for Puyi to simply use good or bad to make a conclusion. He has been an emperor since he was a child and thinks he has everything. However, the government of the Republic of China and the Japanese used foreign guns and cannons to demonstrate against him. In five thousand years of history, he was a rare "three ups and three downs" emperor. He has been named emperor three times: the last emperor of the Manchu Dynasty, Zhang Xun was named emperor when he was restored, and the "Manchukuo" was named emperor; and he surrendered three times: to the Republic of China Surrender, surrender to the Japanese, and surrender to the People's Republic of China. Generally speaking, Pu Yi can be regarded as a person with little energy and no accurate idea, or a mediocre person, a little ignorant. Yes, he also wanted to do something big, such as seeking refuge in Japan and digging his ancestral grave with Xuesundianying, but he didn't have the ability, and those who were close to him just wanted to use him.

From this point of view, saying that Puyi is a first-class war criminal is really exalting him. He was the victim of a dynasty. When the dynasty comes to an end, there will always be people who will be pushed to the front line involuntarily, maintaining its final dignity in a crushed way.

Back to the movie. In my opinion, the most successful part of this film is that the director described Puyi's life in more than two hours from a new perspective. In the movie, Puyi is no longer the sinner we have always understood, but an ignorant, mediocre person with a trace of kindness in his nature. The historical frenzy swept him around, and he was powerless.

The director's use of light and shadow has tended to become a reality. Almost all the films use natural light, and extensive use of wide-angle shooting. Anyone who wants to learn photography or videography should take a good look at this movie and see how to use light to express the mood of the characters. Bertolucci said: "In the Forbidden City, Puyi has never received direct sunlight. He is always in the shadows. During this period of life, he was always isolated from the outside world in thought. Later, when he came from The more things our teacher Johnston learns, the more we feel the sun shining on him. The battle between light and shadow will gradually unfold, just as the conscious and unconscious are fighting against you. In the part of the story of Manchukuo, when he was acted as a puppet emperor by the Japanese, and he himself dreamed of returning to his empire, the shadow almost enveloped the whole picture, as if he had returned to his childhood. Later, in In prison, he recalled his life. The more he knew many things, the light and shadow became more and more balanced. He should end your life in the perfect balance of light and shadow, in a calm tone. I I only hope that this vision can be realized.” Here, light symbolizes openness and joy, while shadow symbolizes closure and melancholy.

In the latter half of Pu Yi's life, that era was inevitably mentioned. The disciplined cadres with oily noodles and big bellies, crazy loyalty dance, swept all the monsters, ghosts and snakes. These things are absolutely impossible to exist in our movies, so seeing this place, my heart is still awkward.

In addition, find a few tidbits:

·The film won the 60th American Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Costume, Best Composition, Best Editing, and Best in 1987. Sound Effect Award, Best Photography Award and Best Artist Award.

Another work of director Bertolucci is the shocking work "The Last Tango in Paris".

Bertolucci’s compatriot Antonioni once filmed the documentary "China" in China during that decade. Antonioni, who claimed to be a "traveler with a camera", encountered great criticism in China. At that time Bertolucci supported Antonioni and believed that "this documentary film "China" depicting a poem about Chinese urban and rural areas is a real film about Chinese people."

·Zun Long is the first actor in Bertolucci’s interview, but Beth’s doesn’t believe that this male number will come so easily, so he has searched for a long time in the United States and Asia. In the end, he returned. Zunlong body.

·Wu Junmei was 16 when she appeared in Wenxiu, and she was only paid 600 yuan at that time. But after filming this film, he went to study in the United States, and later became a star.

·This is the first feature film to be shot in the Forbidden City with the permission of the Chinese government, and it is also the first Western film about China that has received the full cooperation of the Chinese government since 1949. The first Western film allowed to be shot in the Forbidden City was the documentary "Forbidden City" made by Lucy Jarvis in 1973 for NBC.

· Pu Yi's eldest brother Pu Jie and Li Wenda, who helped Pu Yi complete his autobiography, were hired as consultants for the film.

·The crew also interviewed some people related to Puyi, including his wife, warden, and male servant who gave some opinions on the film.

·A total of 19,000 extras were used in the film.

·The lamas appearing in the film are not allowed to be touched by women, so the crew specially hired a male costume assistant for them to assist them in dressing.

·To make the wigs of people in the court, the hair stylist Giancarlo di Leonardis used 2,200 pounds of hair. In order to get to the throne in that scene, his staff spent 10 days training 50 Chinese employees, so that they can get the wigs and braids of 2000 extras within two hours.

·The crew hired an Italian chef to cook for the foreign members of the crew. He brought a total of 22,000 bottles of Italian mineral water, 450 pounds of Italian coffee, 250 gallons of olive oil and 4,500 pounds of flour.

·The management of the studio is very strict. Peter O'Toole, who plays Puyi's British teacher Reginald Johnston, was once rejected by the crew because he forgot to bring his pass.

In order to play the banner man, 2000 soldiers shaved their heads. The officer persuaded them to show their international friendship with Italy and Britain, and gave each soldier a bonus of $3.50.

·The film used 1,100 students to play the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. Director Bertolucci spent a lot of time instilling angry emotions in them, because these children did not experience the emotions of the Cultural Revolution.

· Bertolucci submitted two filming plans to the Chinese government at that time, the other one was the novel "La Condition Humaine" by Andr Malraux. The Chinese government has agreed to the filming of this film and has no restrictions on the content.

· The Chinese film co-production company provided their studio and a large number of extras for the film, in return they got the domestic distribution rights of the film.

·The vast Forbidden City, built in the 15th century, has high and heavy walls, which provided excellent sound insulation for filming, even though the Chinese film crew were not accustomed to recording at the same time.

·As motor vehicles are not allowed to enter, even Peter Otto can only use a bicycle as a tool to enter and exit the studio.

·This is the first best film Oscar rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America.

Producer Jeremy Thomas (Jeremy Thomas) single-handedly raised $25 million for the film.

·The filming period coincided with Queen Elizabeth II's visit to China, but the film crew got the government's priority, making it impossible for the Queen to visit the Forbidden City.

· Ying Ruocheng, who played the chief in the film, was the vice minister of China's Ministry of Culture at that time.

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Extended Reading

The Last Emperor quotes

  • Emperor Pu Yi: After a few years, the tiny republic had become as corrupt as the old Empire. It fell quickly into the hands of ambitious generals and corrupt bureaucrats.

  • Pu Yi, at 15: I'm not a gentleman. I'm not allowed to say what I mean. They are always telling me what to say.