Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Rob Marshall

Writers (WGA):

Robin Swicord (screenplay)
Arthur Golden (book)

Release Date:

23 December 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Geisha | Japan | Jealousy | Love | Coming Of Age

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 28 nominations

Cast

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

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

145 min | Philippines:140 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Japanese | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Finland:K-11 | UK:12A | Australia:M | Singapore:PG | Ireland:12A | Czech Republic:12 | Sweden:7 | Argentina:13 | Hong Kong:IIA | Germany:12 | Netherlands:MG6 | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Indonesia:Dewasa | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Brazil:14 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Canada Video Rating/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | France:Unrated | France:U | Singapore:NC-16 (special edition DVD) | Iceland:L | Hungary:14 | South Korea:15 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41007) | China:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

American River, Sacramento, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The actresses had a six-week crash course on geisha culture.

Goofs:

Continuity: Spoiler: When Okaa-san says she wants to adopt Sayuri, which provokes Hatsumomo's anger, Okaa-san's cigarette keeps changing its own size, being at times totally consumed, and sometimes not.

Quotes:

Chairman: None of us find as much happiness in this life as we should.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Kanjincho (The Subscription List)

Style AND substance

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.