Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)

Nitta Sayuri reveals how she transcended her fishing-village roots and became one of Japan's most celebrated geisha.

Director:

Rob Marshall

Writers:

Robin Swicord (screenplay), Arthur Golden (book)

Stars:

Suzuka Ohgo, Michelle Yeoh, Ken Watanabe

Won 3 Oscars. Another 23 wins & 29 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Suzuka Ohgo	...	Chiyo
Togo Igawa	...	Tanaka
Mako	...	Sakamoto
Samantha Futerman	...	Satsu
Elizabeth Sung	...	Sakamoto's Wife
Thomas Ikeda	...	Mr. Bekku
Li Gong	...	Hatsumomo (as Gong Li)
Tsai Chin	...	Auntie
Kaori Momoi	...	Mother
Zoe Weizenbaum	...	Young Pumpkin
David Okihiro	...	Shamisen Teacher
Miyako Tachibana	...	Dance Teacher
Kotoko Kawamura	...	Granny
Karl Yune	...	Koichi
Eugenia Yuan	...	Korin

Storyline

In 1929 an impoverished nine-year-old named Chiyo from a fishing village is sold to a geisha house in Kyoto's Gion district and subjected to cruel treatment from the owners and the head geisha Hatsumomo. Her stunning beauty attracts the vindictive jealousy of Hatsumomo, until she is rescued by and taken under the wing of Hatsumomo's bitter rival, Mameha. Under Mameha's mentorship, Chiyo becomes the geisha named Sayuri, trained in all the artistic and social skills a geisha must master in order to survive in her society. As a renowned geisha she enters a society of wealth, privilege, and political intrigue. As World War II looms Japan and the geisha's world are forever changed by the onslaught of history.

---

Plot Keywords:

geisha | japan | jealousy | love | coming of age | 

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature subject matter and some sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Apple.com (Quicktime) Buena Vista Japan [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

23 December 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Memorias de una geisha

Filming Locations:

American River, Sacramento, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$85,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$85,436 (South Africa) (5 May 2006)

Gross:

$213,303 (South Africa) (26 May 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, DreamWorks SKG, Spyglass Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

145 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Maggie Cheung was once considered for the role of Mameha.

---

Goofs

When Sayuri discusses the conversation between Dr. Crab and Hatsumomo with Pumpkin, Pumpkin says 'I sat outside the door, but I could still hear them,' then later in the description she says 'Then the Doctor looked queasy, like he didn't want to hear any more.' If Pumpkin was sitting outside the door, she couldn't have seen the Doctor's face.

---

Quotes

Sayuri Narration: At the temple, there is a poem called "Loss" carved into the stone. It has three words, but the poet has scratched them out. You cannot read Loss, only feel it.

---

Connections

Referenced in Vecinos: Presidente de la Manzana (2007)

---

Soundtracks

"Tokyo Boogie Woogie"
(1948)
Music by Ryôichi Hattori
Lyrics by Masaru Suzuki
Performed by Aiko Bingo & The Club Nisei Orchestra
Courtesy of Cord International/Hana Ola Records and 49th State Hawaii Records

User Reviews

Reminds me of Instant Lunch ramen...

With all of the negative reviews in my mind as I walked into the theatre, I braced myself for the worst. It turns out that my opinion of the film that seemed to raise so much controversy over casting and language fell in line with neither the vehemently negative, nor the positive accolades of the critics who hail it as one of the best films of the year. Instead, I left the theater feeling ambivalent, not quite sure to sing its praises or to decry it completely.

One thing is for sure, the film is gorgeous. There are scenes where the colour seems to bleed off the screen, and some just look like portraits. That being said, the film seems to have forgotten subtlety as a facet of art. Memoirs of a Geisha feels like a distinctly American period film, a fabrication marked by artificiality. Instead of using the actors as a vehicle for conveyance, our eyes are instead drawn to the set design, the framing, the cinematography (at least, for me).

Everyone is probably sick of all the discussions about the casting of Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, and Li Gong, but I'm going to raise it again. As a Chinese-American, it was strange for me to see three actors who don't look Japanese play the part of the geisha. Additionally, the fact that the film is in English also proved problematic because although Michelle Yeoh's English is quite polished, Li Gong and Zhang Ziyi's English is definitely not. Much of the time, I was struggling to understand what they were saying (a gripe that I've seen mentioned by many others). The inconsistency of the dialogue (e.g., different accents from different characters, sporadic Japanese words during English conversation between characters)detracted from the film for me, because I had to keep asking myself, "Why is this not in Japanese?" In the end, the film feels like a cup of instant ramen. It's satisfying and tasty when the hunger pangs strike, but an hour later, you're left wondering why you didn't just go for something a little more substantial than freeze-dried noodles in a broth made from water and MSG. Memoirs of a Geisha is an entertaining film, but I don't think I could sit through it again.