Opération geishas

My 90 year old mother asked me if I had this in my oldies collection. Spent hours online trying to find the DVD for a Christmas present. Nada. Now I want it for me too. It's not even on Prime or Vidu. What's going on?

This is a very uneven comedy with a sloppy story that revolves around a silly, spur-of-the-moment decision. During a press conference, when some sailors feel they are being denigrated by the other military branches, one of them says they have started an orphanage. This announcement stirs up interest in the four gobs who are the film's central characters. The American press and the naval brass both want to know more about the orphanage that doesn't exist, leading to the central thrust of the story.

The sailors include Glenn Ford, Donald O'Connor, and James Shigeta. That is quite a diverse group, artistically, and it leads to some ill-performed scenes. The Japanese women (geishas) who are the objects of the sailors' attentions include Miyoshi Umeki. The film actually does a good job with their roles, accurately portraying the geisha life.

What passes for humor in this broad comedy is not for sophisticates. If you like "McHale's Navy", you might enjoy this film. Note that the cast even includes Joe Flynn. Another actor who will become a television notable is Ted Knight, who has few lines.

The funniest part of the film for me is the premiere of Endo's (Robert Kino) film, which is a Japanified western, complete with cowboys who remove their boots before going indoors.

It's 1952. Navy photographer Andy Cyphers (Glenn Ford) gets three new recruits. When he gets pressed for coverage during wartime, he claims that they are supporting an orphanage in Japan. Once in Japan, they accidentally take over a geisha house. When the Navy and reporters take an interest, the guys and girls quickly recruit children to be their orphans.

This may be a bit edgy for its time. I wasn't around. So I don't know. It has a mildly amusing premise. The execution is mildly amusing. The sex comedy part is rather hit and miss for me. The girls are stuck operating at that one gear. The best part happens when the Admiral tries to adopt. Booby is a funny word.

I don't think this was made to be a history commentary. Sometimes a film is made to help people heal from the horrors of past traumas. Glen Ford had an amazing gift that few people realized. He had the ability to make you fall in love, to really make you cry, to be furious, to laugh your heart out and to make us look at ourselves. Another of these films but in my estimation a 10, is Tea House Of The August Moon. One no one should miss. This little film here may be fluf, but compared to today's trash, this gets my vote every time. For families, guys who want a good clean! laugh, and just any bunch of people, it is safe, you could have a good time.

clean !augh and for laugh,

This is another of a large list of service comedies, WWI, WWII and Korea, that were tried by Hollywood producers. Apparently, the idea of being part of an emergency organization of order-givers and not being able to risk one's life actively caused men in uniform to think up fantastic schemes, dream big dreams and want to get back to civilian profit-earning. Case in point--the gentlemen in this happy and very-well-made comedic satire. George Marshall directed these breezy proceedings with his usual genial skill; George Duning provided nice music and Burnett Guffey the colorful and lovely cinematography. The juxtaposition of news-corps uniformed types and Japanese ladies in a place rented by the newsmen for various purposes worked unusually well. In this talented cast are Glenn Ford, Donald O'Connor, Miiko Taka, Miyoshi Umeki, Nancy Kovack, Howard St. John, Michi Kobi, funnyman Joe Flynn, Harlan Warde and talented James Shigeta. Irving Brecher wrote the well-paced screenplay from George Campbell's clever and dialogue-rich novel. Forget the storyline; this is a fine story based on real experiences, exampling the differences between the thinking of the US soldiers and those with whom they deal in another country--in this case, Japan; it is almost a companion piece to "Don't Go Near the Water", only much lower-keyed. It even has a theme--"Be true to yourself", and there are no real villains; only a timetable and romances and the usual GI slightly-illegal goings-on. A vastly underrated and well-remembered film. Watch it, slowly. Enjoy!