Memoirs Of A Geisha(?)

[Jasdero]

I read this book like.. two or three years ago. Really good. I hope the movie doesn't butcher it too much.;;;

[Lady Arianrod]

I saw the movie. I liked it, but it was a bit too depressing to be very enjoyable. The ending wasn't bad, but I wouldn't recommend the movie to anyone who isn't interested in Japan. I wanted to see it because of the cinematography and story, but it is emotionally dark. It was well made, however.

[Mikomi]

I haven't seen this movie yet, but I would like to. I just have to talk the husband into seeing it

[dragonshimmer]

You do realize that by this logic we need Japanese singers for every performance of Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado?

[color=#CC66CC] Considering that Asian "operatic" style singing is VERY different from European, I personally would rather not go by that logic XD]

[Tringard]

for a bit more background, I found this article/slide show helpful some time back. Written by and about modern women that work as geisha.

[Taka]

I'm quite intrested in this movie... Never read the book...

[mitsuki lover]

I read an article in the paper several weeks back that was about one of the dancers who was an extra in the movie.According to her the director got everything wrong when it came to Geishas and Japanese culture.For example when she was doing a dance sequence for them the director wanted to speed it up to make it more Hollywood.
One of the reasons why it is so objectionable to have Chinese actors or actresses play Japanese characters is because of the difference in culture and mores.Japanese actors and actresses would have interpreted the actions of the characters far differently than the Chinese,who are of course alien to the Japanese culture.
Think of it this way,how would it be if a Russian played James Bond?

[Shao Feng-Li]

You know there are Japanese people plaing in this movie. Don't they care? Or would they rather get paid for doing this movie?

[Kisa]

Looks interesting and I am looking forward to seeing it.. theres also a book...

[Radical Dreamer]

Ooo, so I just saw this tonight.

Overall, I enjoyed it, though I thought it was sad in parts. I didn't really appreciate the sexual overtones, but I do realize that they were integral to the plot in one way or another, and there wasn't any nudity, which I did appreciate. I thought the cinematography was absolutely gorgeous, and the costumes were amazing (I believe it won Academy Awards in both of those categories). John Williams did a super job on the music, too.

One of the fun things about watching this with my family was informing them of the meanings of different words in Japanese, like Onee-san, sakura, hajimemashite, okaa-san, etc. The dances Saiyuri/Chiyo did were gorgeous, though, and I thought that all of the actors did a really wonderful job.

Anyways, I enjoyed the movie, though I wouldn't consider it to be my most favorite movie ever, even though it was really gorgeous!

Oh, and sorry if this is considered gravedigging... I didn't want to start a whole new topic just to post here. XD;

[Shao Feng-Li]

Hmm, maybe I'll rent it and give it a try. The costumes look so cool. Saw those platform sandals in the preview... I want 'em!

[Lynx]

i just saw the movie a few days ago... AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING! i loved that movie so much!!! the japanese gardens and scenery and costumes were AMAZING

[Shao Feng-Li]

I remember hearing that it didn't correcty portray the Geisha... Then wouldn't the Japanese actors say something about it?

[Radical Dreamer]

Well, the 3 main female characters were Chinese, so I doubt they would have much to say. They did a good job acting, though, in spite of their actual heritage. I'm not really sure whether they correctly protrayed the geisha or not, since I didn't know much about geisha to begin with, other than the fact that they were entertainers.

[Anime Dad]

Well, the 3 main female characters were Chinese, so I doubt they would have much to say. They did a good job acting, though, in spite of their actual heritage. I'm not really sure whether they correctly protrayed the geisha or not, since I didn't know much about geisha to begin with, other than the fact that they were entertainers.

I have not seen the movie yet, although I have seen previews and read the book (Loved the book BTW!)
I don't know why they used Chinese actresses, I still think they should have used true Japanese ones. More accurate in my opinion. Come to think of it, I can't think of any Japanese actresses that would be considered well-known outside of Japan.... I have heard of the Chinese actresses in the movie before. Although, once they are in their full geisha getup, it would be hard to tell what their nationality was

[ShiroiHikari]

They probably used Michelle Yeoh and Ziyi Zhang because they are somewhat familiar to American audiences. They both starred in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

I dunno. The movie ended up leaving me kind of cold. I mean, it was a beautiful movie to look at and very well-acted, but the story honestly didn't grip me very strongly.