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Ma geisha

Original title: My Geisha
  • 1962
  • Tous publics
  • 1h 59m
IMDb RATING
6.5/10
1.7K
YOUR RATING
Ma geisha (1962)
Romantic ComedyComedyDramaRomance

An actress disguises herself as a geisha in order to land the lead role in her director husband's film version of 'Madam Butterfly'.An actress disguises herself as a geisha in order to land the lead role in her director husband's film version of 'Madam Butterfly'.An actress disguises herself as a geisha in order to land the lead role in her director husband's film version of 'Madam Butterfly'.

  • Director
    • Jack Cardiff
  • Writer
    • Norman Krasna
  • Stars
    • Shirley MacLaine
    • Yves Montand
    • Edward G. Robinson
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.5/10
    1.7K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jack Cardiff
    • Writer
      • Norman Krasna
    • Stars
      • Shirley MacLaine
      • Yves Montand
      • Edward G. Robinson
    • 22User reviews
    • 6Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 1 Oscar
      • 1 nomination total

    Photos35

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    Top cast21

    Edit
    Shirley MacLaine
    Shirley MacLaine
    • Lucy Dell…
    Yves Montand
    Yves Montand
    • Paul Robaix
    Edward G. Robinson
    Edward G. Robinson
    • Sam Lewis
    Robert Cummings
    Robert Cummings
    • Bob Moore
    • (as Bob Cummings)
    Yôko Tani
    Yôko Tani
    • Kazumi Ito
    Tatsuo Saitô
    Tatsuo Saitô
    • Kenichi Takata
    • (as Tatsuo Saito)
    Tamae Kiyokawa
    • Amatsu Hisako
    Ichirô Hayakawa
    • Hisako
    • (as I. Hayakawa)
    Alex Gerry
    Alex Gerry
    • Leonard Lewis
    Tsugundo Maki
    • Shiga
    George Furness
    • George (Robaix's butler)
    Junko Aoki
    • Geisha
    • (uncredited)
    Nobuo Chiba
    • Shig
    • (uncredited)
    Marion Furness
    • Bob's girlfriend
    • (uncredited)
    Kazue Kaneko
    • Geisha
    • (uncredited)
    Satoko Kuni
    • Maid
    • (uncredited)
    Mayumi Momose
    • Geisha
    • (uncredited)
    Nariko Muramatsu
    • Head waitress
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Jack Cardiff
    • Writer
      • Norman Krasna
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews22

    6.51.6K
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    Featured reviews

    9Chris Clazie

    memorable MacLAINE

    First saw this movie on TV one afternoon whilst I was off from work.Had always wanted to see it,but after it's release(rather like John Goldfarb),it kind of disappeared.Lucky to catch up with it though,as from the opening credits I was hooked.MacLaine,very young and initially kooky,is marvellous in this film.I guess most people know the plot by now,but for a comedy,it does have it's touching moments,especially at the end.The scenery is superb,the music is great,the costumes colourful and I for one am glad this will receive a DVD release in December.Edward G and Yves Montand are both good in their roles,although I found Bob Cummings just a bit long in the tooth for his part.Altogether a very enjoyable movie and one to watch for if you haven't seen it before.Yes,I know some of it doesn't make sense,but heck,this is a comedy,and wonderful it is too.
    ButaNiShinju

    the guilty pleasure of enjoying this film...

    Not a great film by any means---the dialogue tends to the wooden, and the plot to the improbable---but, somehow, it is fun to watch. As the movie goes on, Montand and MacLaine seem to warm to their roles, and some of Montand's introspective musings about love, career, and marriage, in the unwitting presence of his wife, are genuinely touching. MacLaine looks quite stunning made up as a geisha, and the location scenes of Japan in 1961 (Kyoto, Tokyo, Miyajima, Hakone) are alone worth the price of admission. Japanese culture is treated with fond respect, not simply with amusement or exotic interest. The speech by the ancient geisha "master" about the idealization of womanhood strays a bit into embarrassing hyperbole, but this is the exception, not the rule, in the film.
    10dlgart

    Shirley shines.

    What on the surface appears to be an improbable plot line becomes increasingly plausible due to the combination of great make up work, spectacular costuming, (Edith Head) and a truly amazing performance by Shirley Maclaine. Crisp, sharp focus, color cinematography, interesting locations and set design, combine with a genuine fondness for Japanese culture resulting in an admirable early 60's comedy/drama.
    8georgeleague

    Shirley as Madam Butterfly will tear your heart out.

    Most of this movie is a regular romantic comedy with some excellent stars. But the end of the movie, where Shirley plays the death scene from Madam Butterfly, will make you weep. I first saw this when I was in the military, and had never seen Madam Butterfly. After seeing this movie, I went to the opera to see the full opera, and it has become my favorite. Having seen the death scene many times in my life, Shirley's performance still ranks up there with the best.
    6sharlyfarley

    "Dramedy" Before Its Time: See it for Shirley

    "My Geisha" never quite manages its transitions smoothly, but they were trying something quite difficult for the period: a comedy with some genuine depth of feeling. They get there in the end, thanks to MacLaine and Montand, but there are a couple of stops along the way. You've read the setup by now, and know that Bob Cummings is playing her leading man, while her husband (Montand) is the Director of his first serious film without his wife's fame to help him succeed. He Has to Do It On His Own. It takes both his wife and his producer much too long to take this seriously, and thereby endanger both marriage and friendship. Because they think he'll come around, or appreciate the joke of her disguise, we do too...until he finally recognizes her. At that point, Montand stops being a supporting player and moves into full partnership. We believe him, and ache for him. We don't believe that "Bob Moore" is his best friend. Cummings' "arrested adolescent" is unfunny and unappealing, and he's given way too much screen time. Edward G Robinson is a pleasure throughout, but a lot of the gags - mixed bathing, sumo wrestling - are fairly condescending and forced in spite of the obvious admiration for Japan and its culture. The scenery is stunning, but there's sadness too in seeing it now. Nobody shoots beautiful films about Japan IN Japan any more; "Last Samurai" was largely shot in New Zealand, "Memoirs of a Geisha" in California. And the undercurrents - the Parker/MacLaine marriage and its eventual dissolution - sometimes haunt the script. Franz Waxman's peppy score keeps preventing us from really believing we're watching a shoot about "Madame Butterfly". When the Puccini music finally arrives, it's marvelous. And when Shirley lip-synchs the aria, she breathes like a singer. Shirley MacLaine went on to prove over and over again that she was more than a kooky comedienne...but at the time this film was made, it was a case of Art imitating Life. It's uneven, but parts of it are definitely worth seeing.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Shu Uemura took over the makeup for MacLaine's Geisha role after Michael Westmore fell ill. The international recognition Uemura received for his work enabled him to launch his own cosmetics company.
    • Goofs
      A huge premiere is planned for the movie Lucy is working on mere days after the final scene is shot; in reality, a major film of the magnitude she's starring in would take months for editing and other post-production work.
    • Quotes

      Kazumi Ito: No one before you, my husband, not even I.

    • Connections
      Featured in The 54th Annual Academy Awards (1982)
    • Soundtracks
      MADAMA BUTTERFLY
      Sequences

      Written by Giacomo Puccini, Luigi Illica, Giuseppe Giacosa

      Performed by Shirley MacLaine (dubbed by Michiku Sunahara) and Robert Cummings (dubbed by Barry Morell)

      Conducted by Franz Waxman

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    FAQ16

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 12, 1962 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Japanese
    • Also known as
      • My Geisha
    • Filming locations
      • Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan
    • Production companies
      • Paramount Pictures
      • Sachiko
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 59 minutes
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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