Original subtitles

'The war criminals will proceed in orderly fashion

'to the main waiting room and await instructions.

'No talking. Obey the guards.

'War criminals must proceed to the main waiting room.

'Those caught talking will be severely punished.'

The emperor.

Your Majesty.

What do they think they are doing?

It is dangerous.

Go back. Go back. Go!

Are you mad? They could kill us all.

Go. Go.

Open the door!

Open the door!

Open the door!

Open the door!

Mama.

By the command of Her Imperial Majesty,

also called the Compassionate and the Blessed,

the Respectful and the Long-living,

the Empress Dowager commands

A is in-Gioro Pu Yi, son of Prince Chun,

shall be transferred immediately

to the Forbidden City

and will remain in the great within awaiting Her Majesty's decision.

Respect this!

Ar Mo, I am giving you my son.

- My son is your son. - Quick! Quick!

I want to go home.

Look. Look at the Forbidden City.

Give him to me.

Ar Mo!

Pu Yi, come here.

How small you are.

Are you afraid of me?

Everyone is.

I am the Grand Empress Dowager.

And I have lived here for a long, long time.

And they call me the old Buddha.

This is Peony.

Do you like her?

Men, you know, are not allowed in the Forbidden City after dark.

Even little men like you.

The only man who can live here is the emperor.

But the emperor is on high,

riding the dragon now.

He died today.

Longevity.

These other men... they are not real men.

They are all eunuchs.

And now they are all waiting for me to die.

That is why they are putting my bed in the middle of the room,

under the black pearl.

Little Pu Yi...

| have decided

that you will be the new Lord of Ten Thousand Years.

You will be the Son of Heaven.

Are we going home, Papa?

Shh! Shh!

Shh. It will soon be over.

Look!

Look.

Cricket!

Cricket! Cricket! Where's the cricket?

Ah, he is my friend, Your Majesty.

Safe and warm under my arm.

Kept me company on the long journey here.

Ah-ha. See?

He is kowtowing to Your Majesty.

Now he can be the emperor's cricket.

Your Majesty, this is the Forbidden City.

Have a look.

This little one is Your Majesty's bedroom.

This is where we are.

Am I going home today?

Not today. Not yet.

And here, look.

This is the Hall of Supreme Harmony where Your Majesty was crowned.

I give Your Majesty the Gate of Martial Valour.

"I give you the Martial Gate... The Gate."

Yes. Yes.

And the Palace of the Cloudless Heaven.

And... yes...

Your Majesty, your Imperial bath is ready.

I don't like baths!

I don't like baths! I don't like baths!

No bean curd today and no meat.

Is it true I can do anything I want?

Of course, Your Majesty. Anything you want.

You are the Lord of Ten Thousand Years.

Oh! No, no, not in my face.

I'm the Son of Heaven!

I'm the Son of Heaven!

Yes. Oh. Yes.

I am the Son of Heaven! I am the Son of Heaven!

Ar Mo! I want to go home.

I want to go home. I want to go home.

I want to go home, Ar Mo.

- I want to go home. - Shh...

Once upon a time

there was a great tree and a great wind.

And when the tree fell, the monkeys were scattered.

His soup is getting cold.

- Where am I? - In the People's Republic of China.

- Why did you stop me? - You are a criminal. You must be judged.

'I repeat!

'Prisoners going to their cells will walk with their heads bowed.

'Keep your eyes on the ground.

'No looking forward or to the side.

'The guards will give you directions and tell you when to turn.'

Pu Chieh.

Your guest is waiting to meet you, Your Majesty.

Also, your mother has arrived.

You have not seen your mother for many years, Your Majesty.

- He is so small. - He is young, Your Majesty.

Go.

Go.

The Emperor's brother, His Excellency Pu Chieh.

Ar Mo.

How is the health of His Majesty's mother?

It is better, thank you.

How much His Majesty has grown.

My mother has not seen me for seven years.

Do you remember my face?

No.

The night they came with the horses, I knew it would be like this.

- My brother sees you every day. - Pu Chieh is very excited to meet you.

He often talks about you.

We are all very proud of you.

The kite.

He chose this for you.

Papa!

They're turning away.

Of course. Ordinary people are not allowed to look at the emperor.

I'm too important.

Is it true that you can do whatever you want?

Of course I can. If I am naughty, someone else is punished.

One of them.

Stop!

The Emperor will walk.

I have never met other children.

- Are they all like you? - I've got three sisters and two friends.

If you come to our house, you can play with us.

The Emperor never leaves the palace.

We play games together!

I know a game too. Run!

The ones on the boat are the high consorts.

- High consorts? - The wives of the emperor before me.

They say they're my mother, but they're not. They're not!

Why are you wearing that? You are not allowed to wear yellow!

But this is ordinary yellow.

- It is Imperial yellow! - No, it is not!

We say it is!

Only the Emperor can wear that yellow! Take it off!

- No! - Take it off!

No! And you're not the emperor anymore!

There is a new emperor now!

He has cut off his queue, and instead of a camel, he has got a car!

What did you say?

You are not the emperor.

Liar!

- You're not the emperor anymore! - Liar!

Liar!

You're not the...

- Liar! - You're not the emperor.

- Liar! - You're not the emperor!

How dare you!

You're not the emperor!

Please. No!

Your Majesty, calm yourself.

- You're not the emperor! - How dare you!

Oh, Your Majesty, calm yourself.

Am I the Emperor or not?

Your Majesty will always be the Emperor.

- You see? - Prove it.

Big Foot.

Drink it.

Go on. Drink the green ink.

I will show you!

See? That is a car. He's the president of the Republic.

Why is this wall here, Lord Chamberlain?

It is just a wall, Your Majesty. Nothing has changed.

You are lying.

High Tutor, am I still the Emperor?

You will always be the Emperor inside the Forbidden City,

but not outside.

I do not understand.

Outside China is now a republic with a president.

Where is Ar Mo?

Ar Mo?

You are all liars!

- Let me say goodbye! - Hurry. Hurry.

He's my child!

Ar Mo?

Ar Mo?

I do not understand.

I do not understand.

Your Majesty is a big boy now. He cannot have a wet nurse anymore.

It is much better like this. Much healthier.

But she is not my wet nurse.

She is my butterfly.

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

Ar Mo!

This is the detention centre

of the Fushun Bureau of Public Security.

And I am the governor.

During the war, this was a Japanese prison.

Many of you may remember it

because you worked with the Japanese.

You were responsible for building it and you filled it with innocent people.

How could this happen? Why did you betray your own country?

What turned you into war criminals?

We believe that men are born good.

We believe that the only way to change

is to discover the truth and look at it in the face.

That is why you are here.

You will begin by writing the story of your lives

and by confessing your crimes.

Your salvation will lie entirely in the attitude you take.

I advise you to be frank and sincere.

Otherwise, things can still go very badly for you.

'After a few years

'the Chinese Republic had become as corrupt as the old empire.

'It fell quickly into the hands of ambitious generals and corrupt bureaucrats.

'The era of the warlords had begun.

'By May 1919, when I received my appointment,

'China was in turmoil.'

May the new tutor present himself.

Your Imperial Highness, the new tutor.

Mr Reginald Fleming Johnston.

How do you do, Mr Johnston?

How do you do, Your Majesty?

Now we will go to school.

Your Majesty, in my country, it would be usual to begin

with some kind of an examination.

The Emperor cannot be examined.

Well, that may have to change.

But first Your Majesty might like to ask me some questions.

Where are your ancestors buried?

In Scotland, Your Majesty.

But then, where's your skirt?

In your country, men wear short skirts, do they not?

No, Your Majesty.

Scotsmen do not wear skirts. They wear kilts.

- Kilts? - Kilts.

A matter of words, perhaps, but words are important.

Why are words important?

If you cannot say what you mean, Your Majesty,

you will never mean what you say,

and a gentleman should always mean what he says.

Ah, yes. A gentleman.

Are you a gentleman?

I would like to be a gentleman, Your Majesty.

I try to be.

I'm not a gentleman.

I'm not allowed to say what I mean.

They are always telling me what to say.

Your Majesty is still very young.

I thought he might like to see some English and American magazines.

I have just received them.

I know that you know that I know

that you know that that is a dialogue

between Confucius and Chuang-Tsu.

Concerning respect, Your Majesty.

Who is this George Washington?

A famous American, Your Majesty.

A revolutionary general. The first American president.

Ah, like Mr Lenin in Russia?

Not quite.

Does he have a car?

He lived a long time ago, Your Majesty.

I want a car.

I think your mouse is trying to escape, Your Majesty.

Please do not tell anyone about my mouse.

The lesson is finished.

The official taster's a brave man.

Many of my ancestors have been poisoned, you know.

Does Your Majesty have lunch like this every day?

Ah, yes. Every day. Like theatre.

I do not know why. It has always been like that.

How do they kill emperors in the West?

The Austrian emperor was shot, was he not?

No. But his nephew was assassinated before the Great War.

But the Russian emperor has been shot. He was called a czar.

Yes.

He took lots of our land in Manchuria.

I'm a Manchurian. Even after the Republic, it's still my country.

The... secret, Your Majesty, is emerging again.

Is something the matter, Your Majesty?

Something is happening.

What is happening, Mr Johnston?

- Nothing is hap... - Quiet.

On our way here, Your Majesty, we were held up by students from the university.

They were protesting against the Republican government

because it has agreed to give away Chinese territory to Japan.

Is it true, Mr Johnston,

that many people out there have had their heads chopped off?

It is true, Your Majesty.

Many heads have been chopped off.

It does stop them thinking.

It is time for the Emperor's rest.

The students are right to be angry.

I'm angry.

But I'm not allowed to leave the Forbidden City.

I want to go out, Mr Johnston.

My lord.

I want to see the city of sounds.

The Emperor awards you with the order of the Ruby Hat Button,

and with the right to be carried in your own chair, with four bearers.

♪ Ye'll take the high road and I'll take the low road... ♪

I hope the Emperor has not forgotten that this is the day for his maths class.

For Your Majesty.

My doctor said bicycles are bad for you.

Bad for you? Nonsense!

How does it work?

Oh.

It's simple.

Head up and eyes forward.

As in life.

My mother's dead, is she not?

Yes, Your Majesty.

I'm profoundly sorry.

I am not.

She killed herself. She swallowed a ball of opium.

I'm going to see her and my brother.

Open the door.

Open the door!

Open the door.

Foreign trouble!

Devil!

Meddler!

Trouble! Nothing but trouble.

- Look where you lead him. - And you are an old, cruel, ignorant man!

The boy's mother is dead, and he's not even allowed to see her!

I want to go out!

I want to go out!

Stop it! Stay where you are!

- I want to go out! - Stop it!

- I want to go out! - Stay where you are! You fool!

Stay there!

Chang.

Hunchback. Big Foot.

Sir.

Give me your hand, sir.

Give me your hand, sir.

Can you not see?

Look at my left ear, please, sir.

Thank you.

And now my right.

Thank you.

Would you follow my finger, please, sir?

Mm-hmm.

Well, it's perfectly simple, Johnston. The emperor needs spectacles.

Like Harold Lloyd.

Impossible.

An emperor does not wear spectacles.

That cannot be allowed.

Times have changed, Your Highnesses.

If His Majesty doesn't get spectacles, Johnston, he could lose his sight.

Your Majesty.

If the emperor does not get spectacles, I will resign.

Unfortunately, our decision is final.

And unfortunately, what I have to say

will be published in every newspaper in China.

What do you have to say, Mr Johnston?

The emperor has been a prisoner in his own palace

since the day that he was crowned

and has remained a prisoner since he abdicated.

But now he's growing up, he may wonder why he is the only person in China

who may not walk out of his own front door.

I think the emperor is the loneliest boy on earth.

It would be conveniently sad if he becomes blind.

Blind, Mr Johnston?

To the expense, Your Excellency.

To the cost of maintaining 1,200 eunuchs,

350 ladies-in-waiting and 185 cooks.

To buying 120 sable furs a month and 3,000 chickens a week.

To the fact that 840 guards and employees of the household department

plus one Lord Chamberlain care only about one thing:

filling their own rice bowls.

You are very good at accounts, Mr Johnston.

The emperor may have abdicated,

but he's still a symbol of great importance to many people.

If I did not agree with that, I would not be here.

And some of us believe

that one day soon he may be more than a symbol.

The spectacles are a detail.

What do you really want, Mr Johnston?

Just the spectacles.

Oh.

The Princess Wan Jung, Your Majesty. Seventeen years old.

Princess Wu Chang. Fifteen years old.

The Princess Di Li, Your Majesty.

And the Princess Fung Ying.

Who is this?

Princess Wen Hsiu. Twelve years old.

She has got a funny face.

Not just one wife. One empress and one secondary consort.

Two wives?

But who did you choose to be the Empress?

They chose her. She's very old, Johnston. She's 17.

That's not so old, Your Majesty.

- What does she look like? - Old-fashioned.

I want a modern wife, Johnston, who speaks English and French.

And who can dance the quickstep.

Johnston.

Sir.

I'm going to escape, Johnston.

I've got a suitcase and a ticket to England.

I am going to Oxford University.

Your Majesty, if you get married,

you will become the master of your own house.

A wedding might be a more practical way to escape.

Why did you never get married, Johnston?

Oh.

The Secondary Consort welcomes the Empress.

The Empress greets the Secondary Consort.

You do everything very well.

Thank you. I rehearsed many times.

What is His Majesty thinking?

I was thinking if I was a real emperor I would become the ruler of China now.

And what would the Emperor do if he could really rule?

I would change everything, even the way we get married.

Is the Emperor against arranged marriages?

It is humiliating not to choose whom you marry.

Even I was not allowed to choose.

In another year or two, His Majesty will be taller than me.

Is it true the Emperor has a suitcase under his bed

and is going to Oxford?

Will the Emperor take Wan Jung with him?

Perhaps he would like to see my face before he decides.

Yes. The Emperor would like to see the face of the Empress.

It is the Emperor who must remove the kait'ou.

I also had a tutor, like Mr Johnston.

Miss Windsor.

She's American.

Miss Windsor taught me how to do the dance of the quickstep.

Does the Emperor know how to do the quickstep?

Will you teach me?

Leave us. Leave us.

If Your Majesty thinks it is old-fashioned

to make the rain and the wind with a stranger

we can be like a modern couple to begin with.

A modern couple?

- Good night. - Good night.

You must come to Oxford with me.

I like him.

I am sure I am going to like him.

And he will grow up.

Eyes down!

Report your arrival.

- Prisoner 981 reporting. - Louder!

Prisoner 981 reporting.

Open the door.

Close the door.

Sit down.

Name.

A is in-Gioro Pu Yi.

Write it.

Now then.

There are two types of confession.

We call them toothpaste and water tap.

The toothpaste prisoner needs to be squeezed every now and then

or else he forgets to keep confessing.

The water tap man needs one good, hard twist before he starts,

but then everything comes out.

Now, you're an intelligent person.

I'm sure you understand me.

Good.

Then we'll begin.

Why do you think you're in here, 981?

I am accused of being a traitor, a collaborator and a counter-revolutionary.

It is not an accusation!

You are a traitor, you are a collaborator, and you are a counter-revolutionary!

Did you write this?

And you call it a confession?

This is nothing but a list of dates. A child's fairy-tale.

What do you want me to confess?

You know what you did and what others did.

So why don't you volunteer the information?

I do not understand.

We don't tell people what to confess.

We already know everything about you.

L.-

Go on.

I wanted reforms.

What did you want to reform?

Everything-

Cut off my queue.

Your Majesty. Please.

It is heavy.

The emperor before me was murdered because he wanted to reform the empire.

Is that not so, Mr Johnston?

Yes, Your Majesty. Probably.

Well... let us see if they will kill me for reforming the Forbidden City.

Lord Chamberlain.

I am appointing Mr Johnston's friend, the poet and scholar Chen Hsiao Hsiu,

to be the new Lord Chamberlain.

I want him to supervise a detailed inventory of the Imperial storerooms

so that we can learn exactly how much has been stolen.

'The Forbidden City had become a theatre without an audience.

'So why did the actors remain on the stage?

'It was only to steal the scenery, piece by piece.'

Can I sleep here? I am frightened.

You're brave.

Are you not frightened?

I am excited.

I do not want to escape anymore.

I want to rule.

Kiss me.

Can I stay with you as well?

Get in. Get in.

I used to play a game with the eunuchs.

Trying to guess who is who.

Now I cannot see you!

Wan Jung?

Wen Hsiu?

Come underneath the sheet with us.

Your Majesty! The storeroom's on fire, Your Majesty!

'The fire was a terrible disaster

'and I knew the eunuchs had started it

'to stop me from knowing what they had stolen.

'There had been eunuchs in the Forbidden City for 800 years.

'There were still more than a thousand of them.

'I decided to expel them all.

'I had to ask for Republican troops to help me.'

What are they carrying?

Their organs.

Whatever their crimes,

they cannot be deprived of the right to be buried as whole men.

Well?

Uh...

I forgot what I was saying.

You're wasting our time!

We want to know about the Japanese.

How did your friendship with the Japanese begin?

Who introduced you? When?

It think was...

It was 1924.

Parliament had been dissolved again. The president had fled.

At first, I thought it was just another coup d'e'tat

by just another warlord.

Only this time it was different.

This time it was my turn.

Fifteen-love.

Play.

30-15.

The rotten government of the Republic is in flight.

Now we shall remove the foreign stench

of the Manchurian rats who still hide in the Forbidden City.

"Mr Pu Yi and his family have been given one hour

"to leave the Forbidden City.

"They will be escorted to the home of his father

"and remain there under guard as state prisoners

"until further notice."

What are you all looking at?

What are you standing there for?

You always wanted to leave the Forbidden City.

Now you've got an hour to pack. So go!

Go!

I always thought I hated it here.

Now I'm afraid to leave.

Do you think they will kill me?

You must do as they say, Your Majesty, while I try to reach the British Embassy.

They will give you asylum there.

I'm sure they will.

Chang, take my car to the south gate. I want you to drive His Majesty.

Your Majesty!

- Please, Your Majesty. - What?

But you didn't go to the British Embassy, did you?

You ended up at the Japanese Embassy.

The Japanese were the only people prepared to help me.

Help you for nothing?

Japan has an emperor. We are almost the same age.

I thought it was kindness.

At the same time I realised that, for many Chinese, I was an alien

simply because I am Manchurian.

There was even an anti-Manchurian league who wanted to assassinate me.

So I went to live in Tientsin.

It was a nice, provincial town with a big port.

In those days they had a large international settlement.

The Japanese thought it would be safer for me there.

Were the Japanese paying for you in Tientsin?

Oh, no.

I had to rent a villa, the Villa Chang.

And it was very expensive.

So were the bodyguards.

I spent a lot of money in Tientsin.

Did you still believe in a restoration of the Imperial system?

Others did. The little court in exile.

I cannot remember how much jade and jewellery they made me spend

to buy the friendship of some warlord or some white Russian general.

And what else did you spend your money on?

Oh, I was never tired of buying pianos, watches, radios.

As long as they were foreign.

Of course.

Anything Western was good.

Especially Wrigley's chewing gum, Bayer aspirin, and cars.

While you were in Tientsin,

most of China came under the control of General Chiang Kai Shek,

the so-called Nationalists, the Kuomintang.

- What were your relations with them? - None.

I felt useless in Tientsin.

I was 21.

I dreamt of going to the West.

I became a playboy.

♪ Am I blue?

♪ Am I blue?

♪ Ain't these tears in my eyes?

♪ Telling you

♪ Am I blue?

♪ You'd be too

♪ If each plan with your girl

♪ Done fell through

♪ Was a time

♪ I was her only one

♪ But now

♪ I'm the sad and lonely one

♪ Now she's gone and we're through

♪ Lord, I'm blue ♪

Very good!

Well done!

That's a great ship if you're going first class.

I am not going anywhere.

Would you like to dance?

You are a brave man. Nobody here would have danced with me.

Why is that?

Because I'm Chinese.

Well, I'm American.

You say California. I say French Riviera.

San Francisco!

Monte Carlo!

Are we really going this time?

Who's that couple?

Oh, Henry and Elizabeth.

The emperor of China?

The ex-emperor and his wife.

- She's beautiful. - Yes, very.

And who are you?

- I am His Highness's other wife. - His other wife?

Number two wife.

Well, some people have all the luck.

Ladies and gentlemen!

General Chiang Kai Shek has taken Shanghai.

The Kuomintang have broken with the Reds

and have knocked them for six!

The Reds are finished!

Sorry about the reception, everyone. We'll get it fixed in a minute.

It would be wiser to return to the Japanese delegation now, Your Majesty.

- Your car is waiting. - Thank you, Mr Amakasu.

Here we go.

'The general strike in Shanghai has collapsed.

'The international settlement is safe.

'Troops of the Kuomintang are now in full control of the city

'and firm steps are being taken to restore order in the native areas.'

Wen Hsiu, you want some gum?

I want a divorce.

I do not want to be your mistress any longer.

I thought you were my secondary consort.

In the Forbidden City, you were the emperor and I was your secondary consort.

But now you are Henry Pu Yi.

Wan Yung is your wife, Elizabeth.

And who am I?

I'm nobody.

I did not know you were so unhappy.

You can only have one wife in the West.

I want a divorce.

No one can divorce me.

I want a divorce!

Your Ladyship!

Your Ladyship!

Thank you.

I do not need it!

I do not need it.

Wen Hsiu.

Elizabeth, can I come in?

Don't you remember me?

I'm dressed like a pilot, but I still can't fly. Not yet.

Eastern Jewel! We had dancing classes together.

Yes, just before your marriage.

You silly girl. Why do people want to get married?

Wen Hsiu is gone.

She will never come back.

Is that so bad?

She was my only friend.

Well, at least now you've got your husband all to yourself.

And you've got me!

I'll be your friend.

- You smoke opium? - Be wicked.

It's the best in Shanghai.

Why are you going to Europe?

The place to go is Japan. It's more fun than anywhere.

It's modern.

How do you know we are going to Europe? It is a secret.

Oh, I know everything.

I know Chiang Kai Shek has got false teeth.

I even know his nickname. Cash My Cheque!

I'm a spy...

and I don't care who knows it.

A spy?

I work for the Japanese Special Service Bureau.

And I've come to protect you.

The Japanese...

They are getting closer to him every day.

He is sending his brother to the military academy in Tokyo.

They talk to him about Manchuria all the time.

And Mr Amakasu never says hello to me.

I do not trust the Japanese.

Of course, I'd love to be the Emperor's new secondary consort.

- Eastern Jewel. - If the post is available.

The post is vacant, my dear cousin.

But you do not fit the part.

Wen Hsiu left the dog behind. Do you want it?

It is my fault.

It is all my fault.

I came to see you, Your Majesty... to give you bad news.

Something terrible has happened.

The Imperial tombs of our Manchurian ancestors

have been attacked and robbed

by troops of the Kuomintang.

Chinese soldiers.

A warlord working for Chiang Kai Shek.

The body of the Empress Dowager... was hacked to pieces.

Her pearl necklace has become a wedding present

from Chiang Kai Shek to his new wife.

Tell me, 981, do you consider yourself to be Chinese?

Of course.

- What is this? - Japan.

- And what do you call this part of China? - The Northeast.

- And what did you call it as a child? - Manchuria.

Japan invaded Manchuria on September 18th, 1931,

and began to set up a puppet state called Manchukuo.

Shortly afterwards, a Japanese delegation paid you a secret visit in Tientsin

to request your collaboration.

Would you say you refused? Speak up!

I already told you. I have told you a hundred times.

Tell us again. Tell us 200 times.

I refused to collaborate.

You say you refused.

But a month later, on November 10th, 1931, there you are arriving in Manchuria.

Or should I call it Manchukuo?

Now, according to this so-called confession of yours,

you didn't go of your own free will.

You insist that you were kidnapped by the Japanese!

- Yes. - And taken to Manchuria by force.

- Yes! - Sit down.

Do you remember a man called Reginald Fleming Johnston?

He was your tutor.

Yes.

And a good friend, I believe.

After 28 years in China, Mr Johnston returned to England.

He became a professor of Oriental Studies at London University

and he wrote a book.

It is called "Twilight in the Forbidden City"

and it is dedicated to you.

I am going to miss you, Johnston.

I shall miss you, Your Majesty.

Do you think a man can become emperor again?

Yes.

Thank you, Your Majesty.

All passengers aboard!

How can we say goodbye?

As we said hello.

Farewell, Mr Johnston.

Farewell, Your Majesty.

All aboard! All aboard!

Thank you.

Thank you.

- All aboard! - All aboard!

All aboard now!

All aboard!

Goodbye, Mr Johnston! We'll never forget you, Mr Johnston!

Goodbye! Mr Johnston, goodbye!

- Goodbye! - All aboard!

On page 449, Mr Johnston writes,

"The endeavour to make out

"that the Emperor had been kidnapped by the Japanese

"is wholly untrue.

"He left Tientsin and went to Manchuria of his own free will."

- Johnston was a liar. - What did you say?

Mr Johnston had left before I was taken to Manchuria.

He could not have known what happened.

Sit down.

According to this account,

you prepared the man's things on the morning of November 9th.

Isn't it unusual for a man who is kidnapped

to have his luggage packed by his valet the day before he is kidnapped?

This is what you have written, isn't it? Who told you to pack this man's luggage?

These two stories don't fit, do they?

It was a long time ago.

Perhaps I made a mistake.

You are lying! You are both lying!

Control yourself!

You can still change your mind.

I am the hereditary ruler of the Manchurian people.

There can be no Manchukuo without me.

Do you not see? The Japanese are using you.

I must try to use them.

The Japanese invasion of Manchuria will be condemned by the League of Nations

and by every civilised country on earth.

The Chinese Republic has broken every promise it ever made to me.

Chinese troops desecrated the tombs of my ancestors.

And Chinese troops did not defend Manchuria from the Japanese.

But Manchuria is still China!

- China has turned its back on me. - Please, do not go.

Manchuria is the richest frontier in Asia.

Coal, oil, railways!

Millions of Chinese immigrants are going there every year.

I'm going to build my country.

Johnston was wrong, but he wasn't a liar.

There was no kidnapping.

You went to Manchuria by your own choice because you wanted to be emperor again!

These might help you to remember the truth.

To heaven.

To earth.

To the moon.

To the sun.

You're an empress again.

What I'm going to be is a pilot.

I'm going to train at a secret base near Yokohama to learn precision bombing.

I want to bomb Shanghai.

Bomb Shanghai?

I hate China.

I hate you.

The Japanese Army High Command. Very impressive!

The Japanese Army!

Quickly!

On behalf of the Emperor of Japan,

the commander of the Kwangtung Army extends his warmest congratulations

on the occasion of His Majesty's coronation.

Manchukuo will grow into a great nation.

Japan will always be at her side to help her.

Uh... may I introduce you?

My wife, the Princess Hiro Saga.

Prime Minister Hsiao Hsiu.

The Honourable Chang Chinghui, Minister of Defence.

The Papal Nuncio, Monsignor Colonna.

The Empress and I accept with great pleasure.

Excuse me, General.

Ah! And our Mr Amakasu.

He's the new chief of the Manchurian Motion Picture Studios.

Why do you have to spoil this day?

Why?

Mr Amakasu is the most powerful man in Manchukuo.

What are you talking about?

You did not believe I could be emperor again, but I am.

You are blind.

Do you know what it means to be an empress?

YOU are an empress.

Why do you not make love to me anymore?

Because you have become an opium addict.

Opium killed my mother. Opium destroyed China.

You can buy opium anywhere in Manchukuo.

- Shut up. - In any shop.

Shut up!

Your brother is going to have a child.

We must have a child.

You must have an heir.

Emperor Hirohito has officially invited us to Japan.

I'm going alone.

You are staying here.

I would never go to Japan.

Then go to your room.

Ten thousand years to His Majesty the Emperor!

Ten thousand years!

Ten thousand years to His Majesty!

Ten thousand years!

I told you I hate you.

Only because I give you what you need.

Now we're engaged.

- You forgot my tooth powder. - Oh.

Yes, sir.

Move him.

981, collect your things.

Upstairs!

Stop.

Your laces are undone. Do them up.

Thursday, you serve lunch. Friday, you clean the toilet.

Saturday, you sweep the floor.

I have never been separated from my family.

You'd better get used to it.

You do not remember me, do you?

I was the Minister of Trade in Manchukuo.

You were all in Manchukuo.

Now I am the cell leader.

It is important to follow the rules here. No talking during study sessions.

Where is your gun, Captain?

Where are their swords?

Our weapons have been removed, Your Majesty,

on the orders of Colonel Yoshioka.

Colonel Yoshioka?

Colonel Yoshioka.

What has happened here? Why has my guard been disarmed?

Yes, it is very unfortunate, Your Majesty.

There have been many changes while you were in Tokyo.

Your Majesty, may I present Masaomi Kobayakawa,

the new Japanese Ambassador to Manchukuo.

Why is Prime Minister Hsiao Hsiu not here to receive me?

The Prime Minister has resigned, Your Majesty.

His son has been assassinated.

Assassinated?

By Communist bandits, Your Majesty.

I must see him at once.

He refuses to see anyone, Your Majesty.

He has gone to a monastery far away.

Who are you?

Chang Chinghui, Your Majesty, Minister of Defence.

Yes.

Of course.

The council meeting will be at four o'clock, Your Majesty,

before the state dinner.

"The Emperor has been asked to sign the following.

"After careful consideration,

"we have decided to nominate the Honourable Chang Chinghui

"as the new Prime Minister of Manchukuo."

No.

Today, on our return from Japan,

we wish to speak of something more important,

the future of our friendship with Japan.

This is based on mutual respect.

And respect means equality and independence.

When the two emperors stood together and saluted the two national flags,

they recognised that Manchukuo had come of age.

Manchukuo is not a colony. Manchukuo is Manchuria.

The relationship between our two countries

is like the relationship between its two emperors.

It is rooted in fraternal trust,

in...

in the desire to preserve our ancient traditions,

and in a mutual respect for our national identities!

Already we have welcomed the ambassadors

of El Salvador, Costa Rica, the Vatican.

Soon, I'm... I'm sure the other countries will follow.

I'm going to have a child.

The father is Manchurian.

Colonel Yoshioka and Mr Amakasu.

I did it for you.

His Majesty forgot to sign the appointment of the new prime minister,

Mr Chang Chinghui.

I did not forget.

When an Englishman robs someone, Your Majesty, he becomes a gentleman.

If he robs a lot, he becomes a knight.

Do you imagine the British run their empire as a charity?

If India has paid for the cost of its own occupation

so must Manchukuo!

We hope Manchukuo will have an heir.

The Empress is expecting a child.

Yes, Your Majesty. We are aware of the situation.

This is the name of the father.

His name is Chang. He is your driver.

All the necessary facts have been recorded.

The man will be punished.

The Emperor cannot allow his honour to be stained.

The Japanese are the only divine race on earth.

We will take China, Hong Kong, Indochina,

Siam, Malaya,

Singapore and India!

Asia belongs to us!

There have been complaints from your cell mates.

You must learn how to urinate at night without waking them all up.

The way to do it is to urinate against the side of the bucket,

not into the middle.

Yes, comrade.

You still think I am your servant, don't you?

You are all pretending.

You are just pretending you have changed.

Shut up! The party teaches us to be new men

while working for a new China!

You worked in Amakasu's private office.

You are still the same people. People do not change.

Guard! Guard!

Guard!

- I let it happen. - Guard!

- Guard! - I let it happen.

Oh!

The second edict, Your Majesty.

Japanese will be the official language in Manchukuo schools.

Your Majesty!

The baby was born dead, Your Majesty.

How is the Empress?

It will be better if she goes to a clinic. Somewhere warm.

She's already left, Your Majesty.

Open the door.

'With Manchukuo now firmly in their grasp,

'the Japanese soon controlled most of north China.

'By 1937 they were ready to strike south

'at the heart of the country.

'The attack on Shanghai was one of the first civilian bombing raids in history.

'It left thousands homeless, thousands dead.

'Three months later, Japanese armies

'were besieging the provisional capital at Nanking

'and when the city fell, the atrocities began.

'Trying to terrorise the rest of China into surrender,

'the Japanese High Command ordered a massacre.

'More than 200,000 civilians were systematically executed.

'The world watched in horror,

'but no help was given.

'On December 7th, 1941,

'Japan attacked the American fleet at Pearl Harbour.

'There was no warning.

'Manchukuo, the Japanese bastion in north China,

'was still ruled by the puppet emperor Pu Yi.

'But behind the fagade of triumph

'was a country enslaved,

'a country where Japanese experiments in biological warfare

'were carried out on live human beings,

'a country where opium production became the easiest way to finance the war.

'Millions of people were deliberately turned into drug addicts.

'Nine days after the bomb at Hiroshima on August 15th, 1945,

'Emperor Hirohito announced the surrender of Japan.

'It was the first time his voice had ever been heard on radio.'

You must get to Tokyo, Your Majesty.

You must surrender to the Americans, not the Russians.

The Communists will kill everyone.

The Empress has returned.

Majesty, please.

Your Majesty!

Hurry! There is no room on the plane, Your Majesty!

The women are not in danger. We must hurry!

Your Majesty! Your Majesty is leaving now!

Now!

The Russians!

Perhaps you think we are here to teach men to lie in a new way.

Why did you sign every accusation made against you?

I didn't stop you from killing yourself to see you like this,

someone who signs anything to please his enemies, to please me!

You knew about a lot of things in Manchukuo,

even the secret agreement,

but you couldn't possibly have known

about the Japanese biological warfare experiments in Harbin.

Could you?

So why did you sign these papers?

I was responsible for everything.

You are responsible for what you do!

All your life you thought you were better than everyone else.

Now you think you are the worst of all!

Why can you not leave me alone?

You saved my life to make me a puppet in your own play.

You saved me because I am useful to you.

Is that so terrible?

To be useful?

A is in-Gioro Pu Yi.

By order of the Supreme People's Court,

the war criminal A is in-Gioro Pu Yi,

male, 53 years old,

of the Manchu nationality and from Peking,

has now served ten years' detention.

As a result of remoulding through lab our

and ideological education during his captivity,

he has shown that he has genuinely reformed.

In accordance with clause one of the Special Pardon Order,

he is therefore to be released.

You see?

I will end up living in prison longer than you.

The Red Guards.

They are so young.

It is dangerous.

Look. Over there.

Pu Chieh, look!

It is the governor of our prison!

- It cannot be. - It is! I'm sure it is!

Be careful.

Come back!

Comrade, this must be a mistake.

I know this man. He is a good man.

- Who are you? - I am a gardener.

Join us, comrade, or fuck off!

- But what has he done? - He has been accused.

- Accused of what? - Emperor's lackey!

- Revisionist element! - Rotten rightist!

- Confess your crime. - I have nothing to confess.

Kowtow to Chairman Mao.

- Confess your crimes. - I have nothing to confess.

Kowtow!

- Confess your crimes! - Wait!

He's a teacher! He is a good teacher!

- You cannot do this to him! - Move! Move!

You are wrong! He is a good teacher!

Stop!

You are not allowed in there!

- Who are you? - I live here.

I'm the son of the guardian.

Ah! Well, I used to live here too.

- That is where I sat. - Who are you?

I was the Emperor of China.

Prove it!

This is the Hall of Supreme Harmony

where the emperors were crowned.

The last emperor to be crowned here was A is in-Gioro Pu Yi.

He was three years old.

He died in 1967.