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When we first meet Jamie, our lead character, how can we describe him?
a smart boy
an entitled boy
Jamie, in the beginning of the movie, is best described as a product of his own upbringing. He is smart, and technically a good boy, but he is also an entitled rich brat.
a small boy
a formal boy
What is Jamie's family doing in Shanghai?
daddy's business
In those days, British expansionism was waning, but still present. It wasn't surprising that Jamie's family would be in Shanghai, if business opportunities for trade were there.
dad is employed by a company there
they moved for the better living conditions
they were on vacation.
What is one of Jamie's rather bad habits?
can't do anything for himself
makes life impossible for the hired help
Jamie falls into the rich, brat stereotype when it comes to making things difficult for the hired help. This is both a cultural and economic class issue.
has no manners
can’t be bothered to follow his parents
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One of the actors, Eric Flynn, could probably give good pointers for acting on the set. Why is this so?
he has been in trouble many times
he studied the subject matter for the movie
he is a history geek for the era
he was a POW when he was younger
Eric Flynn was in a POW camp as a child. For him, the movie isn’t just a story.
Early in the film, what is Jamie's obsession?
planes
Jamie's hobby - or obsession - are airplanes. Given the era, it would gravitate more towards warplanes.
trains
boats
cars
What is it about Jamie that troubles his dad?
Jamie has no interest in taking over the business
Jamie wants to go back to Europe
Jamie wants to be an artist
Jamie wants to join the Japanese forces
Jamie is fascinated by the Japanese military, and the airplanes in particular.
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While attending a costume ball, what does Jamie stumble onto?
a small camp of beggars
a Japanese military camp
While playing with his glider, Jamie happens comes across a camp of Japanese soldiers. He's lucky that his father and the party host came to get him, before more trouble happened.
a small airfield
a house where a Japanese family lives
If Jamie looks familiar, that's because you know him now as the actor who played this role. What is that role?
Joker
Captain America
Batman
Jamie is played by a very, very young Christian Bale. It's interesting to note that in "Empire of the Sun" and the "Batman" franchise, Bale plays a rich boy who has to deal with the darker aspects of humanity.
Iron Man
After the incident with the Japanese soldiers during the party, what advice did the host give Jamie's father?
leave Shanghai
Mr. Graham receives advice from Maxton, the host of the costume ball, that he and his family should get out of Shanghai. And he should do it soon, preferably by sea.
have a guard for his Jamie
close shop in Shanghai temporarily
invest more in Japanese businesses
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What was the major disaster then happens in the movie?
Chinese forces shut down all foreign businesses
Japanese forces invade Shanghai
The first major tipping point in the movie is when Japanese forces invade Shanghai. It's Jamie's first loss of innocence, as his sheltered lifestyle is shattered.
China surrenders Shanghai and nearby territories to the Japanese
Japanese forces make trade impossible
What command did Jamie's mother give to him as they were separated in the chaos?
Jamie should go to the embassy
Jamie should go to the port
Jamie should go to the business office
Jamie should go to their home
Because Jamie wanted to keep his glider, he lost his grip on his mom's hand. As they are separated, she tells him to meet up at the mansion.
In one part of the movie, we see a bomber come in from the sky. What special effect was used for it?
it was only a model
In "Empire of the Sun," the B-29 bomber used for some of the scenes was a very large, radio-controlled model. It may have been hard to use, but with the right camera lens, angles, and lighting, it wouldn’t be noticed.
it was an early use of CGI
it was an actual bomber
it was spliced historical footage
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How does the invasion get up close and personal for Jamie?
he sees how civilians are mistreated
the chaos unnerves him
he sees how blockades separate him from his family
a man dies in front of him
After the general shock and chaos of the invasion, Jamie sees a man die right in front of him.
As Jamie finds his way back home, what happens to him that counts as a karmic balance?
he loses his beloved glider
one of the maids slaps him
As he finds his home in utter chaos, he tries to stop the people who are looting his home. One of them, the servant Jamie mistreated, comes up to him and slaps him. Karmic ouch!
he loses his nice clothes
he is wounded
What happens to Jim as the initial part of the invasion ends?
he is taken by Japanese forces making a sweep of his neighborhood
he finds his way to some family friends
he is taken care of by some loyal servants
home alone, for a few months
Jamie was left to his own devices for a few months. In fact, the only time he leaves home is when water and food supplies in the local area are exhausted. That's when he takes the trip back to Shanghai.
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Why was Amy Irving, Steven's Spielberg's ex-wife, important to "Empire of the Sun?"
she pushed that the film be made
she suggested the title of the movie
she suggested Christian Bale for the role of Jamie
Amy Irving had worked with Christian Bale in an earlier project, and suggested him to Steven Spielberg, her husband at the time. Spielberg took Bale on after the audition.
She was a friend of writer J.G. Ballard
What happened to Jamie when he tried to properly surrender to the occupying Japanese forces?
they ignored him
The Japanese forces ignored Jamie whent he tried to surrender to. It reinforced that without privileges, he was just another lost child.
they gave him to the proper authorities
they beat him up
they tried to kill him
First, his servant slapped him, and now this. What reinforced even more that he wasn't so high and mighty to the "natives" anymore?
a Chinese boy takes him in
a Chinese family treats him poorly
a Chinese boy beats him up
Jamie, after his "surrender" fails, is chased and beaten up by a Chinese boy, and whatever he has of value is taken from him. However, this incident is also what saves him, in a way, thanks to subsequent events.
he is utterly ignored by all the Chinese in the neighborhood
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Who finally takes Jamie in?
Nagata, a Japanese officer
Dr. Rawlins, a doctor left behind
Frank, a truck driver
Basie, an American survivor
Jamie almost literally stumbles into Basie's hands. Basie sees some worth in the kid, and welcomes him into the "team."
Given the limitations for method acting and kids, what wasn't Christian Bale allowed to do, which he did to the extremes in his future roles?
gaining and losing weight
Christian Bale became known later on for changing his physical appearance by gaining or losing weight as needed for the role. As a boy in "Empire of the Sun," however, there was no way they would allow him to look emaciated.
growing facial hair
using twisted body postures
changing his voice
This should have already been a warning to Jamie that Basie was a bad influence. What did Basie try to do?
Basie tried to sell him as manual labor
Basie tried to sell Jamie off as manual labor, but when nothing happened, they wanted to abandon him. And still the kid wanted to stay with them. Talk about missing the point!
Basie tried to sell him out to the Japanese
Basie was inflating his ego
Basie was ignoring him unless needed
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What happens when they try to go back to Jamie's house?
they are almost killed by new owners of Jamie's home
they are captured by Japanese forces
After offering Basie pickings of whatever items of value are left in his old neighborhood, Jamie comes home to find that his house is now occupied by new Japanese owners. Basie is beaten up by Japanese forces.
they get lost
they decide to go to the nearest refugee camp instead
You may know the actor playing Basie from the "Red" movie franchise. Who is this actor?
Brian Cox
Michael Keaton
Bruce Willis
John Malkovich
Basie is played by John Malkovich. He is an accomplished actor who specializes in unusual roles. Playing an opportunistic American survivor in war-torn Shanghai is normal for him. In "Red," he plays a retired and wonky secret agent.
Joe Pantoliano, who plays Basie's sidekick, Frank, is probably more known for the big sci-fi role he had. Which movie was he in?
Gattaca
The Matrix
Joe Pantoliano had a notch up as Cypher, one of the human agents in" The Matrix." However, in both movies, he is a sidekick of sorts, though as Cypher, he wanted to have an upgrade, so to speak.
Dark City
Event Horizon
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How did Jamie prove himself useful enough to get on the truck to the official refugee camp?
Jamie could drive the truck better than the driver
Jamie was good at asking people for directions
Jamie knew the way through Shanghai
Since the official camp was near a country club where his parents used to go, he knew how to get there. He offered this knowledge to the driver, and found a place in the truck.
Jamie knew how to read a map
What became Jamie's specialty in the camp?
he was a scrounger
Scrounging for stuff to trade became Jamie's specialty in the camp. Now known as Jim, he was very good at the complex system of trading that went on.
he knew how to speak Japanese
he sucked up to the camp officers
he made friends with everybody
Because of Jamie's fascination, what nearly kills him in the camp?
Jamie tried to talk to higher officers
Jamie tried to steal from Japanese tents
Jamie saluted Japanese pilots
Jamie saluted pilots, and the camp guards nearly killed him. He was just lucky they saluted back. This action showed that Jamie was still somewhat naïve when it came to the realities of war, even after all that he'd been through.
Jamie wanted to sit in one of the planes
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If you look closely, one of the American POW's is now a famous movie comedian. Who is he?
Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller had a small role as an American POW in "Empire of the Sun." Supposedly, a lot of his screen time was left on the editing floor due to time and story limitations.
Adam Sandler
Rob Schneider
Joe Pesci
What was Jamie's new personality weakness, as he matured in the camp?
impulsiveness
malice
no humility
In the scenes after the time gap, we can see Jamie becoming a bit too cocky. While it's a good thing for what he does, he sometimes makes the mistake of applying it in the worst way possible.
aloofness
How much did J.G. Ballard approve of this film adaptation of his work?
he had a major role
he invested in it
he helped Steven Spielberg with some ideas
he did a cameo
J.G. Ballard, the author of the novel from which "Empire of the Sun" was based, appears as a guest at the costume party. The role was uncredited.
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What was Basie's real reason for asking Jamie to set up snares?
he wanted to sell the captured animals for food to the other camp inmates
he wanted to find out if there were mines
Basie wanted to find out if there were mines in place, so he asked Jamie to set up snares. Either way, he would win with that setup, and all he would have to do is appeal to Jamie's ego and idolization.
he had to keep Jamie busy, he was becoming annoying
he wanted to maximize Jamie's usefulness
What friendship did Jamie strike up while in the camp?
one with a sick inmate
one with a Japanese boy
Jamie struck up an odd friendship with a Japanese boy who was preparing to become a kamikaze pilot.
one with a Japanese guard
one with a Chinese loyalist
Who is Jamie named after?
the original writer's son
Steven Spielberg's late friend
one of the producer's sons
the original writer
Writer J.G. Ballard, also known as James Graham Ballard, is the root of Jamie's name. It's no surprise, since "Empire of the Sun" is said to be a work partly based on real life.
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What was so important about the scene where Jamie was tucked in by his parents?
it's designed like a Norman Rockwell painting
The scene where Jamie's parents tuck him in is lifted directly from the Norman Rockwell painting, "Freedom from Fear." With Rockwell paintings symbolizing an ideal life, it's no surprise that Spielberg included this, so he could use a copy of the actual painting later on in Jamie's wall in the camp.
it shows that he was still a kid at that point
it made a point of how artificial Jamie's life was
it showed how peaceful things were before the war
Towards the end, what was Jamie's breaking point?
he realized he was no longer an innocent kid
he realized he didn’t know his last name anymore
he realized he couldn’t remember his parents' faces anymore
Jamie has a sort of breakdown when he realizes that he doesn’t remember what his parents look like anymore.
he realized he reacted more to Jim, rather than Jamie
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