To survive in a world at war, he must find a strength greater than all the events that surround him.|Dec. 09, 1987|China|153 Min.|PG
Genre: Drama;History;War
Description: Set against the backdrop of Japan’s invasion of China during World War II, “Empire of the Sun” follows the journey of Jamie “Jim” Graham, a privileged British schoolboy living in the Shanghai International Settlement. His comfortable life is upended when Japan occupies the area after the attack on Pearl Harbor. During the chaotic evacuation of the city, Jim becomes separated from his parents. Believing they will return, he goes back to their home, but after exhausting the remaining food, he is forced to venture back into the city.
Jim’s attempts to surrender to Japanese soldiers are ignored, and after being chased by a street urchin, he is taken in by two American expatriates and hustlers, Basie and Frank. Initially planning to abandon him, they change their minds when Jim offers to guide them to his affluent neighborhood to loot vacant houses. To his shock, Jim discovers that Japanese troops have occupied his family home. The three are arrested, processed at the Lunghua Civilian Assembly Centre in Shanghai, and later sent to an internment camp in Suzhou.
By 1945, as the Pacific War nears its end, Jim has adapted to the harsh conditions of the camp. He establishes a thriving trading network, even gaining the attention of the camp’s commander, Sergeant Nagata. Dr. Rawlins, the camp’s British doctor, becomes a mentor and father figure to Jim, who also idolizes the American prisoners and their culture. In a poignant moment, Jim prevents Nagata from destroying the prisoners’ infirmary by begging for forgiveness. Through the camp’s barbed wire, Jim forms an unlikely friendship with a Japanese teenager training to be a pilot.
Cast director: Steven Spielberg
Cast actor: Christian Bale, John Malkovich, Miranda Richardson, Nigel Havers, Ben Stiller, Joe Pantoliano, Leslie Phillips, Masatō Ibu, Emily Richard, Rupert Frazer
Original name: Empire of the Sun