The Last Emperor is a monumental biographical film that follows the life of , the final Emperor of China, from his ascent to the throne as a child to his later life as a common citizen under the People's Republic of China. Cinematic Significance and Production
: The cinematography by Vittorio Storaro is legendary, using a specific color palette to represent the stages of Puyi's life (red for birth and the Forbidden City, yellow for the sun and the Emperor, green for knowledge/tutors).
Released in 1987, the film was a massive international co-production. It is famously known as the first feature film for which the Chinese government allowed filming within the in Beijing. This access provided a level of authenticity and visual scale that remains largely unmatched in cinema history.