The Last Tycoon

The Last Tycoon

Year: 1976

Runtime: 123 min

Language: Chinese

Director: Elia Kazan

DramaRomance

Set in 1930s Shanghai, this film follows Cheng Daqi’s rise to power within the city’s criminal underworld. As he establishes himself as a dominant gangster, his ambition leads him into a complex situation involving forbidden romance and dangerous betrayals. Cheng’s ruthless pursuit of power ultimately results in a dramatic and devastating downfall.

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Timeline & Setting – The Last Tycoon (1976)

Explore the full timeline and setting of The Last Tycoon (1976). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

Golden Age of Hollywood (1930s-1940s)

The narrative sits squarely in the classic studio system era, when power rested with the big studios and productions moved at a brisk pace. Tensions surface around potential writers' strikes and labor dynamics, reflecting the era's balance between glamour and control. The period blends opulence with intense professional ambition and personal longing.

Location

Hollywood, Los Angeles, Westwood

The story unfolds on the Hollywood studio lot during the Golden Age, centered around the production environment and backlots. Key settings include the studio office, the water tower where a flood disrupts a set, and a beachfront house under construction that anchors romantic and creative tensions. Westwood also serves as a backdrop for the actors and executives who orbit the studio world.

🎬 Studio 🏙️ Hollywood 🏖️ Beachfront

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:14

Main Characters – The Last Tycoon (1976)

Meet the key characters of The Last Tycoon (1976), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Monroe Stahr (Robert De Niro)

A brilliant, young production chief whose creative energy drives major studio projects. He commands the production slate with relentless focus, yet is haunted by personal losses and a longing for control. His charm masks a relentless ambition that edges toward arrogance.

🎭 Ambition 🧠 Creative 💔 Haunted

Kathleen Moore (Jeanne Moreau)

An aspiring Anglo-Irish actress whose presence mirrors Stahr's late wife. She becomes a focal point of his longing and a catalyst for his personal choices. Her engagement to another man complicates their liaison and underscores the costs of pursuit.

💃 Romance 🎯 Ambition 🕊️ Choice

Cecilia Brady

Pat Brady's college-aged daughter who navigates studio social circles and becomes entangled in the power dynamics around Stahr. Her interactions reveal a mix of loyalty, flirtation, and strategic influence.

🧭 Power 💬 Social 🎭 Drama

Brimmer

A hard-edged labor organizer whose push to unionize Hollywood screenwriters creates conflict with the studio's leadership. He embodies both idealism and aggression within the labor politics of the era.

✊️ Labor 🗳️ Politics 🧭 Tension

Pat Brady

An older movie producer who wields influence inside the studio and navigates the financial and political pressures of keeping productions afloat. He becomes a checkpoint for Stahr's authority and the board's direction.

🏛️ Authority 💼 Power 🗺️ Industry

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:14

Major Themes – The Last Tycoon (1976)

Explore the central themes of The Last Tycoon (1976), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

👑 Power

Stahr's ascent and his grip on film production illustrate the studio system's centralized authority. The plot contrasts his creative drive with boardroom control and the looming question of who ultimately wields influence. The tension between artistic vision and corporate interests drives both success and risk.

💘 Love

Romantic attachments shape Stahr's decisions, notably his attraction to Kathleen and the shadow of his deceased wife. Personal longing intersects with professional risk, influencing which projects are pursued. These relationships reveal vulnerability beneath a confident exterior.

🎭 Illusion vs Reality

Behind the film reels lies an image crafted to control perception, contrasting with underlying insecurities and ambition. The act of rewriting scenes and narrating stories to Boxley exposes how productions are shaped by manipulation as much as by talent. The boundary between cinema as art and cinema as business is repeatedly tested.

Last Updated: October 04, 2025 at 08:14

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Dramas about ambitious downfalls like The Last Tycoon

Stories of powerful individuals undone by their own ambition and romantic losses.If you liked the melancholic story of Cheng Daqi's rise and fall in The Last Tycoon, explore other movies like it. These dramas follow charismatic, ambitious figures whose personal flaws, forbidden loves, and fatal choices lead to a poignant and tragic downfall, blending personal drama with a sense of a bygone era.

melancholictragiccontemplativelonelyromanticgrimresignednostalgic

Narrative Summary

The narrative follows an arc of ascent to power, often within a specific world like business or the arts, followed by a gradual unraveling. The downfall is typically driven by a combination of hubris, a doomed romantic entanglement, and the shifting tides of the times, culminating in a somber and reflective ending.

Why These Movies?

Movies in this thread are grouped by their shared focus on a melancholic tone, a slow, deliberate pacing that allows for character introspection, and a central narrative of a powerful individual's tragic arc. They create a similar feeling of witnessing a grand, yet deeply personal, collapse.

Movies with nostalgic atmosphere like The Last Tycoon

Atmospheric stories that mournfully capture the end of a glittering era.For viewers who appreciated the nostalgic, grim atmosphere of 1930s Shanghai in The Last Tycoon, this list highlights similar movies. Discover other slow-burn period dramas that capture the romantic regret and elegiac feeling of a beautiful world in decline, focusing on mood over fast-paced action.

nostalgicmelancholiccontemplativeatmosphericromanticelegiaclonelyresigned

Narrative Summary

These stories often unfold in a linear but unhurried manner, prioritizing mood, setting, and character introspection over complex plotting. The central conflict is often against the inevitability of change itself, with the narrative serving as a poignant elegy for a lost way of life or a golden age.

Why These Movies?

These films share a cohesive vibe defined by a melancholic and nostalgic tone, a slow and atmospheric pacing, and a medium emotional weight. They are united by their ability to make the viewer feel a deep sense of longing and contemplation for a beautifully realized past.

Unlock the Full Story of The Last Tycoon

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The Last Tycoon Summary

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The Last Tycoon Summary

The Last Tycoon Timeline

Track the full timeline of The Last Tycoon with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

The Last Tycoon Timeline

The Last Tycoon Spoiler-Free Summary

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The Last Tycoon Spoiler-Free Summary

More About The Last Tycoon

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