Mémoires d'une geisha

Lavish cinematography means 'Memoirs of a Geisha' is never anything less than visually beautiful, and it's hard to think of how any other movie could beat it to an Oscar in this department come March next year. However, the true merit of the film lies in the fact that its sumptuous style does not outweigh substance, something particularly thankful given that such an imbalance was so unfortunately true of House of Flying Daggers, the last major release to star Ziyi Zhang. Instead, the truly enchanting performance of 12-year old Suzaka Oghu, who plays the young Sayuri for the first half hour, ensures attention is captured within her character's story for the rest of the drama. This allows the script to remain pleasingly understated, and also means the unlikely nature of the romance can be overlooked.

The hibernation that the story withdraws into during the wartime years could so easily have been damaging, but in the event the portrayal of how the post-war influx of American troops corrupted Japan's ancient traditions is just as excellent as the rest of the film.

Why there is so much polarity with the audiences of Rob Marshall's cinematic adaptation of Arthur Golden's exquisite novel MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA is puzzling. Even in the theater there were those who left halfway through - reason unknown. Despite disagreements on the casting techniques and on the emphasis changes between the book and the film, MEMOIRS remains one of the most visually arresting, genteel films of the year. That it comes across as somewhat of an epic soap opera is no one's fault but the writers. And what is so wrong with an old-fashioned soap opera of a story afterall? The opening scene of the turbulent sea and heavy rain that accompany the silent selling of two poor sisters to a merchant planning to place the girls in houses in Osaka gives an indication of the importance of water in this story. The sisters are delivered to a house of geishas and only one is selected by the hard madam. Through years of suffering and anguish the chosen one becomes a geisha, finds comfort from her childhood of poverty, gains loving mentoring by a top geisha, becomes the most sought after geisha in Osaka, finds her love, endures WW II and eventually returns to her dreams. The interplay between the girl and the various members of the geisha training and bartering complex add flavor and conflict that keep the story flowing.

The three principal actresses - Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, and Gong Li carry the film well. The large cast includes favorite actors Ken Watanabe and Mako. The settings are splendid, the special effects such as the cherry blossoms, the autumnal reunion of Zhang and Watanabe, Zhang's spellbinding dance - all are brilliant. John Williams' musical score blends the best of Japanese folk music with contemporary writing and is greatly abetted by the talent of Yo-Yo Ma and Itzak Perlman.

Part of the brilliance of Golden's novel was the meticulous explanation of the myriad details of geisha training and demeanor and makeup and tradition, and while the film version touches on these, the bulk of them are passed over. For this viewer there is a problem with understanding the dialogue due to the enunciation by the actors and the covering of much of the dialogue with ambient music. But that is a minor complaint. In all, MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA is an enormously beautiful and affecting film, one that multiple viewings will no doubt enhance the viewers' appreciation. Recommended. Grady Harp, February 06

Can a group of American men and Chinese actresses render the world of a Japanese geisha? The answer is yes, with stunning beauty … and regrettable flaws.

Truth be told, this movie was not as bad as its trailer led me to expect it to be. It had a story to tell (although it crumbles in the end),images to show, and material to present. There were ample displays of exquisite beauty -- the trailing tails of silk kimonos, the subtle allure of hand gestures, and the captivating scene of kabuki dance theater ...

On the other hand, the American director was not able to pull the Japanese out of Chinese actresses. (This movie was so crowded by famous Chinese idols that I found myself inadvertently searching for Joan Chen among the cast.) To be fair, all three main actors (Gong Li in particular) show strong performances that made me sympathetic to Rob Marshall's choices. However, they remain utterly Chinese throughout this movie. The look and accent are not the only problems. They lacked the kind of extreme femininity and excessive felicity of the delicately mechanical gesture and movements of traditional Japanese ladies you see in custom dramas of Japanese production. (Michelle Yeoh seems to be the only one trying a little bit of those, but it did not quite work for some reason.)

So, let me re-address the question: Can a group of American men and Chinese actresses render the world of a geisha? The answer, I guess, really depends on what you are looking for. If you would like a little bit of delight from an aesthetically pleasing picture with a dubious authenticity and realism, this movie delivers it. I would not say Rob Marshall failed completely. Memoirs of a Geisha is not the first, nor the last, movie that subjects another culture to the crude lens of American exoticism. It definitely is not the worst one.

As someone who read the book before watching the movie, I was pleased with the adaptation. The right parts were highlighted and felt the cuts made were necessary for length. The story is truly a tragically beautiful one, and the actors cast fit their characters. Great acting and some beautiful cinematography. Sayuri's dance scene was mesmerizing.

As someone thet has treasured the book, I will be honest. At first I didn't want to watch it. This could have gone wrong in so many ways. But the movie has blown me away.

Many laugh's, moments of deep emotion and true heart must have been put in this movie. And the moments of joy, fun and above all pain and even some tearing happened to me.

It is absolutely beautiful. 10/10 in my life I have ranked over 1130 films and have given a 10 to less then twenty movies, but this must be amongst to top 5 best ones.

I mean wow, the film is so beautiful.