Geisha
Memoirs of a Geisha
Bestselling books have a built in audience, making them very attractive to film producers. Many, many people read and loved the book, which seems odd considering an American male wrote the book, a true testament to the writer’s skill. He so successfully made the reader believe he was simply translating the life story of a real Geisha, we ate it up. He brilliantly evoked the time, place and feel of the period, giving us a glimpse of Japan just before the War. It was a great, interesting book.
“Memoirs of a Geisha” did not translate as well to the screen as the loyal fans of the book might have hoped. The film looks great, but it doesn’t capture the life of Sayuri (Ziyi Zhang) as well, making her a living, breathing human being.
a geisha great story of woman life
Unable to care for their children, their parents sell Chiyo and her sister, Tanaka, to a Geisha house. Soon, Hatsumomo (Gong Li, “Raise the Red Lantern”, “Farewell, My Concubine”), the Geisha in the house, takes a disliking to Chiyo and proceeds to make her life hell. Soon, Chiyo is off to Geisha school, but events cause her to become an indentured servant within the house. Years later, Chiyo (Ziyi Zhang, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, “House of Flying Daggers”, “Rush Hour 2″) has grown up and Mameha (Michelle Yeoh, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, “Tomorrow Never Dies”), a leading Geisha, takes her under her wing to train her.
There are a couple of great, visual sequences. One of these shows Sayuri’s training to become a Geisha over a very short period of time. The scene is very visual and breathtaking to watch. Michelle Yeoh does a great job as Mameha, the more experienced, kinder mentor Geisha. As she guides Sayuri, Chiyo’s adopted Geisha name, through the process, we learn a lot about what their life was like. As a result, she guides us through their unusual world.
Gong Li is also quite good as Hatsumomo, the Geisha who feels threatened by Chiyo and makes her life a living hell. Clearly, Hatsumomo doesn’t entirely buy into the Geisha’s world as she is courting a young man who could never afford the charms of a Geisha, but she is deathly afraid of losing any of her standing. Ken Watanabe plays the Chairman, the object of Sayuri’s attentions.
When the story moves into the phase after World War II, it became even less interesting for me. Anything Zhang Ziyi was able to build with her character was lost as she desperately attempts to become a Geisha once again, to help the Chairman get some American financing. You could have the book here.
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