Breaking Down Walls

This movie based on the Hollywood version of the true story of
China's last emperor is a great movie. Great acting wraps you into
the life of Pu Yi, the last Emperor of China. The movie shows you
many cultural differences between China and your part of the world,
as well as the obvious cultural differences between the Emperor and
the common people.

The director, Bernardo Bertolucci, does a magnificent job of
expressing the various feelings of the characters portrayed through
some great symbolism and great scripting. The behind the scenes
machinations between Japan and China and the background of World War
II seem unreal in the life of the Emperor and this movie. The
scenery in the movie is breathtaking, and is key in the telling of
the story depicting the real world from the Emperor's world.

The story is quite depressing, as some true stories are, but at the
same time teaches you something about yourself. The walls which
surround the Emperor throughout his life may not be much different
from the walls in your life. Learning how he breaks free of those
walls, finally, is the key to the movie and what makes it worth the
while.

It is a long movie, 3.5 hours if you get the directors cut, but it is
definitely worth it. A great movie which will take you away into a
world that you have never seen before.