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The sad life that they had to live was diabolical...

Can you react to "Memoirs Of A Geisha"?

i have the colorized version

VE Day - Victory in Europe, VJ - Victory in Japan.

The cricket is the mandate of heaven. First it kowtowed to Puyi, now it kowtows to Chairman Mao and his Red Guard

Laughton was a fantastic actor, and probably would have been remembered as a fantastic director had "Night of the Hunter" got a little better reception than it got on its release.

A classic.

The actor who played Concubine Yu murdererd himslef

I suggest you watch "Shadow of the vampire" before watching the new movie. It's a different view of how Murnau made this movie.

A great movie.

The pause button is the best intermission

*Henry, you are understanding of human nature. Never change.*

I’m loving that you are watching these historical Chinese stories.

The film used about 19,000 extras (mostly recruited from the People’s Liberation Army) and required about 9,000 costumes. Acclaimed cinematographer Vittorio Storaro worked with the Art Director, Set Designer and Costume Designer using color palettes to create emotional environments, emphasizing red, orange, yellow at various stages of Pu Yi’s life with green having symbolic meanings.

First feature film to have governmental permission to film in The Forbidden City and the production company was given access to film in The Forbidden City for 6 months. The Tibetan lamas at the Coronation ceremony were real Buddhist lamas.

This film won 9 Oscars and many other awards, particularly for the cinematography, for costume design and the music. The Criterion Collection has released a restored/conserved dvd with numerous bonus features, including commentary from the Italian director and numerous other crew members.

This is such a magnificent creation and it is thrilling that you have reacted to it. The music is especially beautiful and the score is a combination of 3 sources, Cong Su who has contributed to several films; the phenomenally talented composer Ryuichi Sakamoto who also played Mr. Amakasu; and David Byrne (famous as the leader of the group Talking Heads.)

New sub. I really liked this reaction.

I remember watching this movie as a teen along with Empire of the Sun. They both had such an emotional impact on me. Thank you for your reaction.

Wonderful film about a neglected piece of history. I'm very glad you chose to watch it. In order to succeed to the throne, the dowager empress Cixi formally had Puyi adopted by his half-uncle, the late Gwangxu emperor. Cixi, hanging onto power until her last breath, did not want any interference or influence from Puyi's mother (Youlan), so she had very restricted access to him after the adoption. Puyi's father Zaifeng indeed headed the Regency Council during Puyi's childhood, but held little affection for Youlan, and so access was never loosened after Puyi's accession. As the movie notes, she committed suicide in 1921. The instrument of abdication was negotiated by the Regency and signed by the empress dowager Longyu (wife of the Gwangxu), as she was also one of the Regents. Puyi would not have been a part of the negotiations for the deal. The flowers Wanrong ate during the post-coronation party were orchids and so were edible (vanilla is an orchid). Although the film doesn't cover it (as it is based upon Puyi's memoirs - which accounts for much of the toning-down of some of the more cruel aspects of his character), both the secondary consort Wenxiu and the empress consort Wanrong had tragic outcomes that I wish had been included. Thank you for adding some of that in your commentary! Ryuichi Sakamoto was largely responsible for the Oscar-winning score but also did such a good job playing the sinister Japanese chief-villain Amakasu. John Lone and Joan Chen were also great here. It was providential that the film was during a brief period when filming at the original palaces in the Forbidden City and at the Imperial Palace at Hsinking/Changchun was possible with a lot of leeway given.

For some reason I thought you meant Chinese language movies, but it was movies ABOUT China. A European movie, The Last Emperor is a good choice and Americans were shooting Empire of the Sun in Shanghai at the same time. Both productions were the first Western in China in decades.

Fun to see this again after so long, and strange too, after watching Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace. (Joan Chen and Vivian Wu were both in that too.)

Such a great movie in so many ways, but not nearly enough people even know about it, let alone react to it. So cool to see what you think about this one.

Oh, and super reaction Henry.

The one Chinese Movie living rent free in my head since the 1993 😭

John Lone also attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts graduating in 1979, I graduated in 1987, so I have always felt close to this film.

Great move. Is it irony that this is prefaced by a Shen Yun ad? Good stuff, Henry. Thanks

"Words are important." "Why are words important?" "If you cannot say what you mean, Your Majesty, you will never mean what you say and a gentleman should always mean what he says." Fun Fact: Theatrical movie debut of Richard Vuu. Family Affair Fact: Screenwriter Mark Peploe and director Bernardo Bertolucci are real life brothers-in-law. Good Eating Fact: An Italian chef was brought in to cook for the international cast. He brought with him 22,000 bottles of Italian mineral water, 450 pounds of Italian coffee, 250 gallons of olive oil, and 4,500 pounds of pasta. Casting Notes Fact: John Lone and Joan Chen would go on to co-star in The Hunted (1995). Victor Wong, Lisa Lu, and Vivian Wu would appear on-screen together again, in the cinematic adaptation of Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club (1993). Extra Extra Fact: 19,000 extras were needed over the course of the film. Two thousand soldiers had the front of their heads shaved in order to play Qing banner men. They were persuaded to do so by their officers who convinced them that it show friendship to the Italians and British. They were given a bonus of $3.50. Location Location Fact: This was the first Western film made in and about the country to be produced with full Chinese government cooperation since 1949. This is the first feature film granted permission by the Chinese government to be filmed in the Forbidden City. The 250-acre Forbidden City, built in the early 15th century with high walls up to 50 feet thick, provided an excellent soundproof filming environment, although the Chinese crews weren't used to making films with live sound. Most of the exterior and interior scenes of Puyi's mansion during his years as a puppet emperor for the Japanese, most notably the "Coronation Ball" scene, were filmed at the Imperial Palace in Changchun, where he lived from 1934 to 1945. The mansion is now a museum. Historical Fact: The real Reginald Johnston (Peter O'Tool) spoke fluent Chinese and was extremely well versed in the history of China, as well as its poetry. Puyi's (John Lone) younger brother, Pu Chieh, and Li Wenda, who helped Pu Yi write his autobiography, were brought in to act as advisors on the film. In real life, when Puyi (Richard Vuu) met Empress Cixi, he screamed in terror. He later described seeing an eerie yellow curtain with an ugly thin face behind it. She was displeased, and had one of her servants offer him candy. When he screamed even louder, she had him taken away. She died the next day. During his interrogation by the Communists, Puyi references that, while living in Tianjin, there was "an Anti-Manchurian League" that wanted to assassinate Puyi. Although not talked about further in the movie, they carried out various plots to kill Puyi up until 1931. Yuan Jin, the real-life Chinese prison governor who was responsible for the real Puyi's rehabilitation, appears in the scene where Pu Yi receives his pardon. Yuan Jin calls Pu Yi's name ("Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi!") over the microphone. As Pu Yi steps forward, the pardon is read aloud by Ruocheng Ying, who plays Yuan Jin's role in the film. John Lone shakes hands with Yuan Jin before receiving the pardon.

What a great movie I have yet to see a reaction to!

Fun Fact: The actor who played "Pu Yi" is John Lone. He trained in Peking Opera at Hong Kong's Chin Ciu Academy from age seven. His training included singing, classical Chinese theater, dance, and movement. He had a singing career and released some albums. He sang in several films, including The Last Emperor.

Wait what?!? I love old movies and this movie in particular changed my world. But I never thought others would like them or let alone react to them

He was imitating James Cagney, a great star of the 30's to the 50's

Hi i'm new here and if it's ok for you to watch that animated feature film no one remembers. "Eleanor's Secret" (2009) I was requesting anyone at TH-cam to watch it but they didn't notice me. ;( It can only be found at "Tubi". (Just in case if you tried find.) P.S. Don't tell me film request requires something...? 😰 Also put quote for community post about "Eleanor's Secret" (2009)|First Time Watching "Just because it's a story, doesn't mean it's not real!"

Thats My Socks

реакция просто отличнейшая!

Это совершенно замечательная реакция на одну из моих самых любимых экранизаций данного романа. Этот фильм во многом отличается от книги и история в нём сильно сокращена. Но я очень люблю эту версию несмотря ни на что. Я считаю, что здесь великолепно подобраны практически все актёры, особенно, на главные роли. Фильм прекрасно снят. У меня есть семь особенно любимых версий и несколько тоже более или менее любимых. Эта несомненно относится к особенно любимым. Я время от времени пересматриваю её. Это была великолепная, вдумчивая реакция. Спасибо Вам за неё!

UUUMMM.... MAYBE MENTION WHERE YOU LIVE! I'M SURE THE HAZE SUCKS BUT ARE YOU IN CALIFORNIA? JAPAN! AUSTRALIA? *THE BLADE RUNNER SETTING? LOL

The money involved is interesting: Bob Cratchit earns 15 shillings a week, and supports a wife and 5 (?) children. So raising Mrs. Dilber's wage from 2 shillings a week to 10 is astronomical! First of all, think how little money she gets, though maybe she lives in the house and gets room and board. Or else she goes out and works for other people, and accumulates enough money to live on. Another thing: Samuel Wilkins, who stops Scrooge on the steps of the stock exchange, owes him 20 pounds. There are 20 shillings in a pound, so basically he owes Scrooge as much as Bob Cratchit would earn in 6 months! How on earth would a poor man (and you can tell by his accent that he's not from the upper classes) get together that much money at one time? Probably he borrowed a small amount, but the interest has built up to this staggering sum, and Scrooge is willing to have him thrown in jail if he can't pay.

Fantastic film. One of my favourites

"Mr Clean" was a 14 year old (no lies!) Lawrence Fishburne when this was made. Crazy, huh?

I was born in a communist country that borders China, I'm sure you can guess which one. The depiction of the "Cultural Revolution" struck a nerve because it happened to my countrymen as well. Seeing art and culture being destroyed is painful. Great start to the Chinese films list. Where I was born we actually did pay attention to the Chinese New Year. I was born in the year of the Rat.

This is the film I became obsessed with Wendy Hiller. I have watched all but one of her movies.

Love all the historical info - is very helpful!

Well done Henry.

An instant play. YES!

I saw this in the theater. Just loved it. They don’t make movies like this anymore. R.I.P. Leslie Cheung - his life was so sad. He had everything. If you want to see another amazing Chinese movie by a famous director I would suggest Happy Together. It also has Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung (probably most famous actor in China - who also was in Marvel Chang Chi (but you can skip that one. lol)

Joy luck club?

Dieyi grew up in an environment where everyone tells him to regard himself as a girl. He is harshly punished whenever he recites "I am a boy, not a girl." Xiaolou once said to him, "You can think of yourself as a girl, just don't stuff up the lyrics again." When Xiaolou punished Dieyi for reciting it wrongly again, Dieyi broke. Xiaolou has been his closest brother for years. Being punished by his best brother, who has always treated him nicely and protected him, was the final straw that broke the camel's back. That was the day he embraced the female role and became obsessed with it. Eventually, he became famous for the role, and people praised him for it. All these factors led to the creation and solidification of his female personality. Would things have turned out differently if he was raised in a normal household? Maybe. We will never know. ..... Early in the movie, Juxian said, "If you tire of me, I'll jump again and kill myself. No big deal, really." At the time it seemed like she said that to make Xiaolou marry her. It turns out she really meant what she said. She's the Concubine Yu of her own story, don't you think so? In an earlier scene, she also poured wine for Xiaolou (using the "old" jade cups). It's just like Concubine Yu pouring wine for King Chu before she used the sword on herself. ..... I failed to notice this on the first watch. When Dieyi was facing withdrawal symptoms and called for his mother, Jixuan felt like she became a mother for a short while. Dieyi experienced having a mother again, while Juxian experienced having a child. ..... Xiao Si betrayed his master. He is a dog that bites the hand that feeds him. He was influenced by his peers and by the propaganda spread everywhere. When he said, "By forcing me to kneel, you're breaking the law," it reminded me of a child threatening to call Child Protection Services on their parents. The parents discipline the child, but the child sees it as abuse. Immature people (not just children) should not have too much power or leverage. Otherwise, they become too arrogant and spoiled. ..... I failed to notice that the Concubine Yu playing with the jewelry (near the end of the movie) was actually Xiao Si and not Dieyi! Xiao Si's clothes were quite obvious, but I really didn't notice that. At the time, I didn't understand the point of that scene, but it makes sense now that I know it's Xiao Si.

my reading of the film is that its jarring..the friction of old against new..the blasted out colour, talk of business changing because of the new motorway, the oddly old fashioned wife making nouveau cuisine, the police talking in loose, fumbling terms about psychopathy (profiling) ..Rusk's cheeky chappy persona (reminiscent of 50's ealing comedy) whilst being a rapist and murderer...i think its saying there are alot of uncertainties in this coming future, things are changing, something is bubbling under, things to get nervous about.

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