Empire of the Sun

It has been a while since I saw this one, but I remember it well enough.  This is yet-another movie I have not read the book for.  I want to read it,  I just haven't obtained a copy of it yet.

Quick summary, copied and pasted from IMDB,  leaving in the email of the person who wrote it:

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Based on J. G. Ballard's autobiographical novel, tells the story of a boy, James Graham, whose privileged life is upturned by the Japanese invasion of Shanghai, December 8, 1941. Separated from his parents, he is eventually captured, and taken to Soo Chow confinement camp, next to a captured Chinese airfield. Amidst the sickness and food shortages in the camp, Jim attempts to reconstruct his former life, all the while bringing spirit and dignity to those around him. Written by Jeff Hansen <jmh@umich.edu>
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#1  -  I don't feel like Christian Bale was the right choice for this role.  Maybe that's just me.  I wanted to like this kid,  if only because his name was Jamie,  but I couldn't.  The way Bale plays him...he's just incredibly annoying.   I realize a lot of kids are, and maybe the point of the entire thing was to portray him as what he was:  a smug, spoiled, arrogant little shit of a child.  But I would imagine I was supposed to feel sympathy for him at some point, and I didn't.   Not even as he was separated from his parents.  I just felt like they should cut their losses.  Maybe have another kid who isn't such a brat next time around.

I couldn't understand why Basie kept him around,  or how Basie was able to obtain all the stuff he did.  Oh, a small part of me was a little bit thrilled knowing the main character's name was Jamie,  and I was like "yessss, gonna get to hear Malkovich say my name!"  but....he decided to only call the kid Jim.  Woe is me.

This movie was interesting.  I had never much thought about that side of World War II.   I am fascinated by that war,  but I've always put my focus onto Germany, Poland, the Russians,  etc.  Never had I given much thought to Japan.

I wanted to care what happened to Jim,  but I just didn't.  The movie drags during his stay at the camp.  Basie was the star character in my mind.  I loved that he came back at the end and was confused as to why Jim didn't go with him.  

I don't know.  I'm not a great Spielberg fan to begin with.  There, I said it.   I get that he is one of the all-time greats and so on,  but I am not in love with his films.  

I think this would have worked better with if they had cast a child that I didn't want to smack every single time he did anything at all.