The Last Emperor a "panoramic masterwork"
In Time Out New York, Bilge Ebiri writes on The Last Emperor: "Bertolucci's panoramic masterwork presents the reverse of what ennobling historical films usually try to teach us: Pu Yi has no power; from his unwitting elevation to the throne to his unexpected abdication to his pathetic attempts to regain his past glory, this is a man acted upon by history, not the other way around. The result is a bewildering masterpiece--a glorious film about an inglorious man."
