Memoirs of a Geisha
3.5/4
Starring: Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li, Ken Watanabe, Koji Yakusho
Rated PG-13 for Mature Subject Matter and Some Sexual Content
I love stories that guide us through a new and foreign culture or way of life. It is fascinating to learn how people of a different world live and what stories they have to share. Arthur Golden's novel is a richly detailed and exquisitely crafted story of not only the life of a geisha, but a story of a spunky and intelligent heroine to guide us through this hidden world, all the while trying to be closer to her one true love. Although it lacks a lot of the detail (time constraints have something to do with this) and depth of the book, the film version is about as good as one could hope for.
One of the difficulties screenwriter Robin Swicord faced when adapting the novel is that it is told from a first person perspective of a character with a very unique personality. Parts of her personality have been smoothed down in the film version to make her more identifiable, but it still works. The other main difficulty is that many of the actors had difficulty speaking English (which is a must for any mainstream American film), and neither Gong Li or Suzaka Ohgo knew how to speak English period. The solution, having playwright Doug Wright stay on set to rewrite lines that the actors found difficult to say, yields mixed results (some of the lines are very clunky).
The story details the life of Chiyo (Ohgo), a young child sold by her parents to an okiya (a geisha boarding house). She is separated from her sister, Satsu (Samantha Futerman), and forced to work as a laborer until she can begin geisha school. But her beauty attracts the wrath of the full geisha at the house, a wicked and cruel creature called Hatsumomo (Li). Her wrath leads Chiyo to trouble, but the young girl is taken under the wing of Hatsumomo's rival, Mameha (Yeoh), and becomes one of the most celebrated geisha in all of Miyako (where the film is set). But Sayuri (Ziyi), as she is now called, is still pining after the Chairman (Watanabe), a powerful man who once took pity on her.
The film caused a bit of controversy because none of the actors are Japanese. Reportedly, producer Lucy Fisher held an open casting call for Japanese actresses, but no one showed up (there is evidence to take this with a grain of salt, since many of the actors are known to at least the arthouse crowd). That being said, all of the performances are top-notch.
The cast is filled with some of the best actors in Asia. Zhang Ziyi, who made a significant inroad with her breathtaking performance in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," is wonderful as Sayuri. She has wonderfully expressive eyes (which are important for the character), and has immense talent to boot. Ziyi portrays the character as naiive, but intelligent and determined. As Mameha, Michelle Yeoh (who also starred with Ziyi in Ang Lee's masterpiece) is also excellent. Mameha is a good teacher, patient and caring, but she's also a realist; she knows that her plan to destroy her rival could very well fail. Respected actor (and one of two members of the main cast who is actually Japanese) Ken Watanabe is also very good as the Chairman. He recognizes that the character is really a figure of idolization, like a beautiful model or celebrity, and yet Watanabe gives the Chairman personality and humanity; never does he become a cliche or a plot device. Not to be forgotten is Japanese character actor Koji Yakusho, who plays the bitter Nobu. Disfigured by war, Nobu is a man who takes no pleasure in life and despises geisha, and yet Sayuri gets under his skin. Nobu doesn't know how to react to her attention; he adores her but hides behind a shield of anger and disgust. Yakusho understand all facets of the character's personality and plays him with consummate skill.
But the best performance goes to international superstar Gong Li. Rightfully called the Asian Meryl Streep by Rob Marshall (who directed her in this role) and Michael Mann (who would direct her in her next film, "Miami Vice"), Li is absolutely perfect in the role. Despite saying some of the clunkiest lines in recent memory, she gives a performance that should have gotten her a long overdue Oscar nomination. Hatsumomo is a beautiful but vicious woman who doesn't like competition (and is smart enough to realize off the bat that Chiyo is a real threat). Li makes her thoroughly unlikable, but is good enough to make the character human (just a spoiled brat in a kimono). There is a wonderful scene where she is caught doing something she shouldn't, and without saying a word, goes from smug to sad. This scene is a testament to the actress's talent.
Stage director Rob Marshall came onto the Hollywood scene with his energetic and visually dazzling version of the musical "Chicago" (for which he received an Oscar nomination), and his visual sense serves him well here. We are literally transported to pre-WWII Japan, and boy, is it beautiful. As lensed by Dion Beebe, this is a place of dreams, but behind the facade, lies a place of pain and secrecy.
The problems (other than the occasional clunky line of dialogue) occur in the final act. When World War II breaks out, the film turns into a romantic melodrama. It's not bad, a little corny maybe, but still good. But it doesn't live up to the promise of the previous two hours. The mystery is gone, and the story of pining love is not as compelling as Sayuri's evolution into a geisha.
This is a superb, sprawling epic that is well worth savoring over and over again. A word to the wise, however. This film is rather sexually graphic, and deals with attempted rape and child prostitution. The MPAA gave it a PG-13, and I'm not sure that that is appropriate. If it is, it's pushing the limit.
Starring: Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li, Ken Watanabe, Koji Yakusho
Rated PG-13 for Mature Subject Matter and Some Sexual Content
I love stories that guide us through a new and foreign culture or way of life. It is fascinating to learn how people of a different world live and what stories they have to share. Arthur Golden's novel is a richly detailed and exquisitely crafted story of not only the life of a geisha, but a story of a spunky and intelligent heroine to guide us through this hidden world, all the while trying to be closer to her one true love. Although it lacks a lot of the detail (time constraints have something to do with this) and depth of the book, the film version is about as good as one could hope for.
One of the difficulties screenwriter Robin Swicord faced when adapting the novel is that it is told from a first person perspective of a character with a very unique personality. Parts of her personality have been smoothed down in the film version to make her more identifiable, but it still works. The other main difficulty is that many of the actors had difficulty speaking English (which is a must for any mainstream American film), and neither Gong Li or Suzaka Ohgo knew how to speak English period. The solution, having playwright Doug Wright stay on set to rewrite lines that the actors found difficult to say, yields mixed results (some of the lines are very clunky).
The story details the life of Chiyo (Ohgo), a young child sold by her parents to an okiya (a geisha boarding house). She is separated from her sister, Satsu (Samantha Futerman), and forced to work as a laborer until she can begin geisha school. But her beauty attracts the wrath of the full geisha at the house, a wicked and cruel creature called Hatsumomo (Li). Her wrath leads Chiyo to trouble, but the young girl is taken under the wing of Hatsumomo's rival, Mameha (Yeoh), and becomes one of the most celebrated geisha in all of Miyako (where the film is set). But Sayuri (Ziyi), as she is now called, is still pining after the Chairman (Watanabe), a powerful man who once took pity on her.
The film caused a bit of controversy because none of the actors are Japanese. Reportedly, producer Lucy Fisher held an open casting call for Japanese actresses, but no one showed up (there is evidence to take this with a grain of salt, since many of the actors are known to at least the arthouse crowd). That being said, all of the performances are top-notch.
The cast is filled with some of the best actors in Asia. Zhang Ziyi, who made a significant inroad with her breathtaking performance in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," is wonderful as Sayuri. She has wonderfully expressive eyes (which are important for the character), and has immense talent to boot. Ziyi portrays the character as naiive, but intelligent and determined. As Mameha, Michelle Yeoh (who also starred with Ziyi in Ang Lee's masterpiece) is also excellent. Mameha is a good teacher, patient and caring, but she's also a realist; she knows that her plan to destroy her rival could very well fail. Respected actor (and one of two members of the main cast who is actually Japanese) Ken Watanabe is also very good as the Chairman. He recognizes that the character is really a figure of idolization, like a beautiful model or celebrity, and yet Watanabe gives the Chairman personality and humanity; never does he become a cliche or a plot device. Not to be forgotten is Japanese character actor Koji Yakusho, who plays the bitter Nobu. Disfigured by war, Nobu is a man who takes no pleasure in life and despises geisha, and yet Sayuri gets under his skin. Nobu doesn't know how to react to her attention; he adores her but hides behind a shield of anger and disgust. Yakusho understand all facets of the character's personality and plays him with consummate skill.
But the best performance goes to international superstar Gong Li. Rightfully called the Asian Meryl Streep by Rob Marshall (who directed her in this role) and Michael Mann (who would direct her in her next film, "Miami Vice"), Li is absolutely perfect in the role. Despite saying some of the clunkiest lines in recent memory, she gives a performance that should have gotten her a long overdue Oscar nomination. Hatsumomo is a beautiful but vicious woman who doesn't like competition (and is smart enough to realize off the bat that Chiyo is a real threat). Li makes her thoroughly unlikable, but is good enough to make the character human (just a spoiled brat in a kimono). There is a wonderful scene where she is caught doing something she shouldn't, and without saying a word, goes from smug to sad. This scene is a testament to the actress's talent.
Stage director Rob Marshall came onto the Hollywood scene with his energetic and visually dazzling version of the musical "Chicago" (for which he received an Oscar nomination), and his visual sense serves him well here. We are literally transported to pre-WWII Japan, and boy, is it beautiful. As lensed by Dion Beebe, this is a place of dreams, but behind the facade, lies a place of pain and secrecy.
The problems (other than the occasional clunky line of dialogue) occur in the final act. When World War II breaks out, the film turns into a romantic melodrama. It's not bad, a little corny maybe, but still good. But it doesn't live up to the promise of the previous two hours. The mystery is gone, and the story of pining love is not as compelling as Sayuri's evolution into a geisha.
This is a superb, sprawling epic that is well worth savoring over and over again. A word to the wise, however. This film is rather sexually graphic, and deals with attempted rape and child prostitution. The MPAA gave it a PG-13, and I'm not sure that that is appropriate. If it is, it's pushing the limit.
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