Legend of the Last Emperor

This is a 59 episode story about Pu-Yi, the last Qing Emperor of China and the drastic changes that occurred during his lifetime. The production values are very good and the acting and direction is good. The series, like the autobiography by Pu-Yi, contains omissions and half-truths. Such as: the suffering and death of his wife, Wanrong; the timing of certain events in his life; the influence of Reginald Johnston is very briefly shown; characters included for comic effect and drama. Like Pu-Yi's book, his life from prison time appears as a propaganda piece cheer-leading Communist principles and their process of remolding war-crime prisoners as well as the prison being portrayed in a rosy picture. The disaster of the Great Leap forward and its effects isn't even broached as is the Hundred Flowers period. The violence of the Cultural Revolution which began just before he died is touched on in the last episode and how it touched some of his friends. A problem watching has to do with the English subtitles. Some long passages will sometimes flash on the screen and are gone before you can read them. You end up speed reading to get anything out of the dialogue. Other than that, the series shares many of the experiences that Pu-Yi wrote about and is worth watching.

"Legend of the Last Emperor" is an excellent series which provides a comprehensive and chronological look at Puyi's life which has not been covered in any other film or series.

As compared to other films, I thoroughly enjoyed the 1987 film "The Last Emperor" but noticed right away, due to time constraints, the story had to skip vast periods of Emperor Puyi's life. The viewing audience never got to see the reasons behind his abdication or get a sense for the long years in which he grew up alone in the Forbidden City. The 1920s were also glossed over very hurriedly, with the later half of the film occupying the 30s when Puyi was a puppet for the Japanese.

"Legend of the Last Emperor" fills in all of these gaps and, although at times the series does appear as a type of soap opera, the story flows well and the viewer gets a real sense of living Puyi's life as it happens.

I do think the series could have done a much better job casting European actors. Reginald Johnston (a major character in the 1987 film) appears as a 30s something young man with a Russian accent - obviously cast by the Chinese from Eastern Russia or a former Soviet republic, and he is obviously not British and is much younger than Johnston would have been in his 40s.

In all, an excellent series and enthralling as well as a tribute to this amazing and sometimes depressing period in Chinese history.