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:

Ziyi Zhang, Ken Watanabe, Michelle Yeoh

Won 3 Oscars. Another 29 wins & 47 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
Gong Li	...	Hatsumomo
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 the 1920s, 9-year-old Chiyo gets sold to a geisha house. There, she is forced into servitude, receiving nothing in return until the house's ruling hierarchy determines if she is of high enough quality to service the clientele -- men who visit and pay for conversation, dance and song. After rigorous years of training, Chiyo becomes Sayuri, a geisha of incredible beauty and influence. Life is good for Sayuri, but World War II is about to disrupt the peace.

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Plot Keywords:

female protagonist | geisha | japan | jealousy | 1920s | 

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Taglines:

A world of mystery threatened by destruction.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

Because none of the Japanese rickshaws were large enough for the two women to be comfortably seated next to each other, the rickshaw used for the scenes in which Mameha and Sayuri travel together in one carriage was manufactured in California, using wheels and axles shipped in from Japan.

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Goofs

Sayuri is the Year of the Monkey, not the Rooster.

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Quotes

Sayuri Narration: [while little Chiyo is on the train to the hanamachi] My mother always said my sister, Satsu was like wood. As rooted to the earth as a sakura tree... But she told me I was like water... Water can carve its way through stone. And when trapped, water makes a new path.

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Crazy Credits

No studio logos are shown at the beginning. They however appear shortened after the end credits and are accompanied by the film's score.

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Connections

Referenced in Vecinos: La carrera por la manzana (2007)

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Soundtracks

Kanjincho (The Subscription List)
(ca 1840)
Written by Rokusaburo Kineya (as Kineya Rokusaburo)
Performed by Ensemble Nipponia
Courtesy of Nonesuch Records
By Arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

User Reviews

Good adaptation of famous novel with complete oriental casting

Chiyo(Suzuka) is a child who lives along with parents(Mako) a miserable life in a impoverished fishing village.She is sold to a Geisha house(Tsai Chin) in Kyoto suffering misfortunes,odds,,brutal treatment and humiliations specially by the principal Geisha, Hatsumomo(Gong Li). One time grown up(Zhang Ziyi)she is saved by his rival Mameha(Michelle Yeoh).She'll work in laborious activities until achieve being the Japan's most celebrated Geisha confronting against the jealousy contender(Gong Li). From the starting point are described the emotions,records and infancy images; continuing with the adult epoch and her success as Geisha until the second world war and after time in that protagonist tries going the ancient way of life,thus problems are always cropping up among conflict of tradition and modernism. The picture is plenty of inventive and stimulating images and develops a complex human drama,love story and is pretty moving. The film is a nice rendition of a famed bestseller by Arthur Golden and lavishly produced by Spielberg and Douglas Wick. It's colorfully and stunningly photographed by Dion Beebe.Brilliant and luxurious costume design was realized by Collem Atwoodand,besides wonderful Japanese houses and gardens with lush production design. Evocative and atmospheric music with oriental sounds by the master John Williams who in that year(2004) made four excellent musical scores:War of the words,Star Wars,Munich and this movie. The motion picture is rightly directed by Rob Marshall. Well worth watching for the cinematography and gowns. Rating :Above average

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA Japan France

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

23 December 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Memoirs of a Geisha

Filming Locations:

American River, Sacramento, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$85,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$682,504, 11 December 2005

Gross USA:

$57,490,508

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$162,242,962

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Dreamworks Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

145 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1