Empire of the Sun (1987)

From Spring Of 1940 to the Summer of 1941 Britain experienced " Its finest hour " where an island people found itself fighting alone against Nazi Germany and fascist Italy . We experienced Dunkirk , the blitz , the battle of Britain and 36,000 British and commonwealth troops held back a force of 400,000 Italian troops in North Africa . If Britain had accepted the Nazi peace deal on offer the history of the human race would have been entirely different and not in a good way either . Ironically after this zenith of British courage we went onto lose the peace which is something we've been resentful about ever since

I'm being neither nostalgic nor nostalgic when I point out the above . It's just in the early scenes of EMPIRE OF THE SUN the Brits in China are shown as being arrogant , ignorant phillistines who all live in nice big houses . Maybe this might have been true of those Brits living in ivory towers running the empire but it's an atypical view of the average Brit during the second world war . I might have let it pass but seeing as the director's Steven Spielberg who insists on always casting British actors to play Nazis in all his movies and who put the boot into Monty in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN I can't help thinking he's somewhat Anglophobic . Read my opening paragraph and you'll learn more about Britain in the second world war than you will from seeing this movie

There's other flaws in the screenplay ( Written by Tom Stoppard who's not an American by the way ) which people have noticed . It is rather disjointed and episodic . The audience is shown the events of the Japanese Imperial Army invading Shanghai in 1941 where all the Westerners are put into a holding camp then events jump forward almost FOUR years later where the prisoners are held in an internment camp . What ? Nothing of any interest has happened in four years ? Some critics have also mentioned the rather clichéd characters and I agree . The Brits are all rather stiff upper lipped types while the Yanks have a cheeky extrovert attitude with plenty of scams going on . Did the Americans have a monopoly on scams during the war ? I also have serious reservations on the way the Japanese are portrayed in this movie . When Alexander Solzhenitsyn said " The only difference between the Nazis and the communists is that the Nazis used gas " it's a statement that could have been used to describe the Japanese occupation forces of the 1930s and 40s , but here they're shown as noble warriors ( I don't dispute the raw courage of the Japanese of the time but there's nothing noble about mass murder ) who salute the young James . If the author of the book JG Ballard said it this scene happened then it happened but I do have many reservations about the Japanese portrayal

There are many positive aspects to EMPIRE OF THE SUN . Technically it's very good with some fine scenes like the above saluting scene and the mustang flying over the internment camp with the pilot waving to young James in slow motion and the scene where the young protagonist believes he can resurrect his dead friend but for me the best scene is where Basie is allowed onto a truck where he turns his back on James who is left behind in a heart wrenching moment . It's these moments that linger long in the memory and certainly make EMPIRE OF THE SUN a far better regarded film than it certainly deserves to be

It's also a film with a very good cast who rise above the material . It's surprising to thi

Fmovies: Empire of the Sun is about a wealthy British boy living in British controlled states of China during WW2. He is torn from his parents and placed in a camp for British citizens. He tries to find a way to connect the good of his old life to the good life in the camp and a life filled with war, but finds that no matter what there is no good out of war. This is an amazingly underrated film that should be watched by a mature, attentive person. This film is laced with compassion and power put in one. A must see for war buffs (or for Spielberg buffs). No matter what even if you hate this film, you will have a favorite part. One of Spielberg greatest films ever made (personally his greatest). 10/10

it was one of those movies i never expected to watch. it was late, i was bored, and i happened to stumble upon a channel i barely ever watch. and while i sat watching events unfold in front of me, i slowly forgot about my usual program of interest. there is something about this film that truly captivates you and leaves your eyes glued to it every second. Christian bale displays his talents wonderfully in this movie, and the most striking thing to me was his ability to give such a realistic, yet youthful performance. his subtle acts of defiance against authority, his brave expeditions that left older men in awe, the fact that a little boy could irritate a general so much. friendships were forged, even with the enemy and it was by far one of the most astounding movies i've ever seen. it's long, it's good, and if you haven't seen it - do so.

Empire of the Sun fmovies. Empire of the Sun, I have just revisited this film on DVD and was amazed the effect it left on me. This is almost an unknown film relative to most other Spielberg work. The DVD is not even available in Australia, so I had it 'Amazoned' from the US.

Christian Bales performance as the 12 year old Jim is mesmerizing. He is in virtually every scene of the 2.5 hour movie and gives us the full range of emotions. He also one of the best looking kids I've seen, which add tremendously to the viewing appeal of the movie. A true heart throb in the making.

As a history lesson Empire give us an insight to the happenings in China in WWII, and the ambitions of the Japanese Empire, which are never touched on in other WWII movies.

The most emotional part of the film for me: Jim is looking through the fence at the Japanese airbase, the sun is setting, he is dreaming of flying in those incredible machines, pilots are smartly uniformed and decorated, offices passing drinks to the young pilots, superb music playing, Zeros ready to go, Jim salutes the Japanese heroes as they are flying out. What we know is that the war is lost for Japan and these pilots are surely on Kamikaze suicide missions. We feel great empathy for these fellow human beings despite the fact that they are the enemy.

The images in Empire are beautiful to look at, the movie is thought provoking and provide some history lesson, if somewhat fantasy and sacrine sweet. A behind the scenes war movie with heart. My favourite Spielberg movie and in my top 15 of all time. Other favourites in no order. Titanic, Patton, Unforgiven, Airport, Terminator, Salaam Bombay, 2001, Bridge on River Kwai, Minority Report.

This movie was a visual, character driven movie of superior quality, even for Steven Speilberg. Some say that Speilberg has too much the eye of a child, but I tend to disagree. Too many filmmakers today are producing slick, throw away action flicks that at first seem promising but eventually fall into predictable, fluff and special effects laden, thinly plotted, dialogue-poor, characterless movies that are gone before the popcorn. Yes, this film has a lot of great Special Effects (So did Schindler's List.) Moreover, a lot of great action to keep the story pace from dragging. The idea of a movie is for the actors and directors to show their stuff (Hopefully around some good writing.) This movie did it for me. I have to agree with all those who praised Christian Bale for his performance in this movie. He was brilliant. In addition, I got to see Ben Stiller in an unusual role for him. I thought that John Malcovitch acted perfectly for this film and yes he was a Han Solo/Indiana Jones character, but with even less depth. His role was pivotal only in so far as it affected the boy. We were not as concerned with his character in so much as his shadow was cast on Jim through out the movie. The war was bigger than this little boy was and it was exquisitely done. Steven Speilberg gives us wonder, mystery, action, adventure and history in everything he does. He's the consummate filmmaker.

When I first saw the epic film 'Empire Of The Sun' by the inspirational director Steven Spielberg I became emotionally involved in the story and could not help but shed a tear for the truly remarkable piece of cinema. Christian Bale performs, without question, better than any other actor has in a Hollywood film that is twice his age. As he closes his eyes at the end of the film in one of the most moving scenes I can remember, you see what a simply fantastic job Spielberg has done to bring J. G Ballard's classic book to the screen. Not ever has a film been more inspirational to me whilst following my dream to become a director as this. At the end of it you feel you want to move people when making a film as much as you were moved by this one. Wonderfully acted, beautifully shot - no other film will ever compare to this.