Trivia: When Jim returns home after losing his parents, his nanny slaps him. The actors had practiced a fake slap and fake reaction, but Spielberg and the actress playing the nanny conspired to make the slap real when the cameras were rolling, so Christian Bale's reaction would be genuine. Therefore, Bale is really being slapped, and his shocked reaction is no act.
Empire of the Sun (1987)
1 trivia entry
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: John Malkovich, Christian Bale, Joe Pantoliano, Miranda Richardson, Leslie Phillips, Nigel Havers
Revealing mistake: When Jim is riding the bicycle through the empty hospital, the "Frigidaires" begin falling through the roof. One bursts open, dropping its contents onto the floor. Something from inside must have landed on the camera because you can see it jerk suddenly.
More questions & answers from Empire of the Sun
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Chosen answer: The first time, Jim says "Nanika no machigai desu. Bokutachi wa minna tomodachi desu yone. Senso no sei desu." This roughly translates to "There has been some sort of mistake. We are all friends aren't we? It is the war's fault." The second time, Jim only says "Nanika no machigai desu. Bokutachi wa minna..." and then gets pushed aside. "There has been a mistake, we are all...". I hope that helps.