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Empire of the Sun

1987

Steven Spielberg

Christian Bale, John Malkovich, Joe Pantoliano, Miranda Richardson ...

7.3

29,355

Drama. Adventure. War An aristocratic British youth is seperated from his family at the start of World War II after the Japanese Army invades British controlled areas of China. Reduced to living on the street and fighting for food, the youth is eventually interned in a Japanese POW camp for British civilians. Here, admiration quickly develops both for captured American pilots and the Japanese themselves. When the war ends, the boy torn from everything he ... [+]

	Media	Author	Review
		Janet Maslin The New York Times	"A visual splendor, a heroic adventurousness and an immense scope that make it unforgettable."
		Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"The movie is always interesting from a narrative point of view. Spielberg is a good storyteller with a good tale to tell. But it never really adds up to anything (...) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"
		Hal Hinson The Washington Post	"[Spielberg] has made his epic, and some of it is brilliant. But the psychological aspects of the film are stunted."
		Damon Wise Empire	"'Empire' is one of Spielberg's most fascinating films (...) A fine performance from Bale (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		Dave Kehr Chicago Tribune	"'Empire of the Sun' isn't a film drawn from observation or introspection but from some vague impressions of what a masterpiece should be"
		Sheila Benson Los Angeles Times	"For all its good intentions, for the thrillingly staged moments (...) and for all its not-inconsiderable craft, the film's grave problem is a lack of central heating: We don't have a single character to warm up to"
		Bilge Ebiri Rolling Stone	"It's a stark portrait of shattered illusions, showing how youthful wonder transforms into terror and paralysis (...) John Malkovich gives one of his finest performances."
		Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader	"Turned out with the director's characteristic craft and slickness (...) The pseudomystical vagueness that seems to be Spielberg's stock-in-trade stifles most of the particularity of the source"
		John Gill Time Out	"The budget makes itself seen, as does Bale's superlative Jim."
		Joanna Berry Radio Times	"Despite the presence of such talents as John Malkovich, Miranda Richardson and stiff-upper-lip Brit Nigel Havers, this seems a rather superficial look at life under occupation (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"
		Keith Phipps AV Club	"Morally complex. Stoppard's script is a model of epic economy"
		Martyn Bamber Slant	"'Empire of the Sun' is pure Spielberg and a perfect match of director and material (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"

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