Review of Empire of the Sun (1987) by Coop L — 14 Jan 2009
A remarkable story told in a disappointingly unremarkable way. Spielberg's trademark sublime direction gets this movie through it's senselessly long runtime, but the screenplay in the end prevents it from being as successful as it should.
Unfortunately after seeing so many similar pictures like The Pianist and Rescue Dawn with beautifully structured scripts and grabbing plot devices Empire of the Sun comes across as dreary and tedious without either quality to really keep you entranced for the duration of the film.
That said Empire of the Sun is still a sumptuous sight to behold, Spielberg utilizes every opportunity to create beauty from the ugliness of the internment camp, and his photographer captures it perfectly.
Christian Bale's performance is everything that you've heard it is, an impressive achievement that foreshadows the fascinating professional he would later become. The one surprise in this film was the excellent work by John Malkovich, who steals every scene that he's in, it's only a shame he's not in it a little bit more.
A really interesting character nuanced very finely. All said slightly disappointing but still a technical marvel, and does succeed in being quite moving at the end.
This review of Empire of the Sun (1987) was written by Coop L on 14 Jan 2009.
Empire of the Sun has generally received very positive reviews.
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