Empire of the Sun is a 1987 American epic coming-of-age war film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Tom Stoppard, based on J. G. Ballard's semi-autobiographical 1984 novel of the same name.

[1] The film received positive reviews, with praise towards Bale's performance, the cinematography, the visuals, Williams's score and Spielberg's direction.

However, the film was not initially a commercial success, earning only $22 million at the US box office, although it eventually more than recouped its budget through revenues in foreign markets, home video, and television.

[4] Amid Japan's invasion of China during World War II, Jamie "Jim" Graham is a British upper middle class schoolboy enjoying a privileged life in the Shanghai International Settlement.

He is surprised to see lights on in his family home and thinks his parents have returned, only to discover that the house is occupied by Japanese troops.

One night after a bombing raid, Nagata orders the destruction of the prisoners' infirmary as a reprisal but stops when Jim begs forgiveness.

As they leave, Jim's trainee pilot friend goes through the ritual kamikaze preparation and attempts to take off in a Japanese attack plane.

Arriving at a football stadium near Nantou City, where many of the Shanghai inhabitants' possessions have been stored by the Japanese, Jim recognises his parents' Packard car.

He spends the night there with Mrs. Victor, a fellow prisoner who dies shortly thereafter, and witnesses flashes from the atomic bombing of Nagasaki hundreds of miles away.

As a child, his favourite film was Lean's The Bridge on the River Kwai, which similarly takes place in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.

Spielberg's fascination with World War II and the aircraft of that era was stimulated by his father's stories of his experience as a radio operator on North American B-25 Mitchell bombers in the China-Burma Theater.

[5] Spielberg hired Menno Meyjes to do an uncredited re-write before Stoppard was brought back to write the shooting script.

[12] These P-51s were flown by Ray Hanna (who was featured in the film flying at low-level past the child star with the canopy back, waving), his son Mark and "Hoof" Proudfoot and took over 10 days of filming to complete due to the complexity of the planned aerial sequences, which included the P-51s actually dropping plaster-filled replica 500 lb bombs at low level, with simulated bomb blasts.

A number of large scale remote control flying models were also used, including an 18-foot wingspan B-29, but Spielberg felt the results were disappointing, so he extended the film contract with the full-size examples and pilots on set in Trebujena, Spain.

[15] Industrial Light & Magic designed the visual effects sequences with some computer-generated imagery also used for the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.

The site's critical consensus reads, "One of Steven Spielberg's most ambitious efforts of the 1980s, Empire of the Sun remains an under-rated gem in the director's distinguished filmography.

[6] Critical reaction was not universally affirmative,[5] but Richard Corliss of Time stated that Spielberg "has energized each frame with allusive legerdemain and an intelligent density of images and emotions".

[20] Janet Maslin from The New York Times said Spielberg's movie-conscious spirit gave it "a visual splendor, a heroic adventurousness and an immense scope that make it unforgettable".

"[22][better source needed] J. Hoberman from The Village Voice decried that the serious subject was undermined by Spielberg's "shamelessly kiddiecentric" approach.

[25][26] At the 60th Academy Awards, Empire of the Sun was nominated for Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume Design (Bob Ringwood), Film Editing, Original Music Score, and Sound (Robert Knudson, Don Digirolamo, John Boyd and Tony Dawe).

[32] Jim's growing alienation from his pre-war self and society is reflected in his hero-worship of the Japanese aviators based at the airfield adjoining the camp.

"[1] Other topics that Spielberg previously dealt with, and are presented in Empire of the Sun, include a child being separated from his parents (The Sugarland Express, E.T.

the Extra-Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Color Purple, and Poltergeist)[N 2] and World War II (1941, and Raiders of the Lost Ark).

"[1] The dramatic attack on the Japanese prisoner of war camp carried out by P-51 Mustangs is accompanied by Jim's whoops of "...the Cadillac of the skies!