InsidePulse DVD Review – Memoirs of a Geisha

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(Credit:Amazon.com)

Directed by
Rob Marshall

Cast:
Suzuka Ohgo …. Young Chiyo
Zhang Ziyi …. Chiyo/Sayuri
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
Yôko Narahashi …. Mameha’s Maid
Michelle Yeoh …. Mameha
Kenneth Tsang …. The General
Ken Watanabe …. The Chairman
Navia Nguyen …. Geisha in Green
Natsuo Tomita …. Geisha in Lavender
Youki Kudoh …. Pumpkin
Fumi Akutagawa …. Yukimoto Teahouse Matron
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa …. The Baron
Koji Toyoda …. Male Hairdresser
Steve Terada …. Boy on Bike
Yasusuke Uike …. Sumo Referee
Shuhei Nagao …. Small Sumo Wrestler
Kiyoshi Sugawa …. Large Sumo Wrestler
Kôji Yakusho …. Nobu
Randall Duk Kim …. Dr. Crab

The Movie:

After the Oscar fallout from Crash’s win over Brokeback Mountain, no one else seemed to notice that there were some other films that really racked up some gold statuettes on Hollywood’s big night. Winning just as many trophies as the Crash and Brokeback was Memoirs of a Geisha, Rob Marshall’s visually stunning epic. Although the film didn’t win in any major category, it’s nice to see that the Academy rewarded the film for being a feast for the eyes. Surprisingly enough, the film brings quite a bit of heart along with it to make Memoirs of a Geisha a satisfying surprise to say the least.

Early on in the movie’s running, it’s easy to point out the film’s biggest weakness; language. Filmed almost entirely in English, a sense of reality is lost due to each character speaking in a language that is foreign to them. Then again, the picture’s three leads, Zhang Ziyi , Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh, aren’t from Japan either, so perhaps the film would be hampered even further if it were filmed in Japanese.

Despite their problems with the dialogue each of the women live up to their reputations here as three of the greatest actresses in Asia. Zhang Ziyi is Sayuri, a young girl sold into slavery to a geisha house at a very early age. Geisha, contrary to popular belief, are not prostitutes, but entertainers, and Sayuri goes through many hardships early on. These women are almost living dolls; beautiful and graceful, they are adept at singing, dancing and the art of conversation.

Losing her chance at freedom shortly after arriving at the geisha house, Sayuri is in deep despair until she falls in love at first with The Chairman, played by Ken Watanabe. Secretly devoting her life to being able to love this man, Sayuri goes on an odyssey of hardship, betrayal, war and unrequited love. What is surprising is that though the film’s biggest weakness rears its head early on, once getting swept up in this story, its easy to let the current take you along for this gorgeous ride.

Though I was hesitant to look past the use of English and the fact that three Chinese women were playing Japanese roles, Memoirs a Geisha is an expert film adaptation by Director Rob Marshall. The film’s main theme of repressed love gives it direct comparison to some of Asia best Romantic pictures such as Chen Kaige’s Farewell, My Concubine, Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Yôji Yamada’s Twilight Samurai. Also, once you’ve accepted these particular actresses for these roles, the film goes down smooth like warm sake.

Zhang Ziyi once again shows why she is so sought after all over the world. Her Sayuri is as lovely as she is innocent. The character is a wonderful bridge to the world of the geisha, as her journey begins as a child into adulthood. Is this world completely accurate on screen? Perhaps not, but the story is still universal enough to make it completely compelling.

As good as Zhang Ziyi is, she is nearly overshadowed by the beautiful Gong Li. Li is Hatsumomo, the reigning geisha of the household that Sayuri lives. Hatsumomo lives by her own rules, breaking codes of etiquette and love, and soon the two become major rival. It’s wonderful to get to see Gong Li in a major Hollywood production. She’s arguably one of China’s greatest actresses ever and she makes the most of getting this type of exposure.

Michelle Yeoh radiates on screen with another elegant performance, even though she doesn’t have to do any flying this time out. Her Mameha is a mentor to Sayuri, teaching her protégé the ways of the geisha. This is a rich character with a back story that is touched upon just enough to make her that much more interesting.

Geisha is also filled with important Asian actor working in Hollywood over that the last thirty years. Even though it’s only a small role as Sayuri’s father, I always love seeing Mako in a major motion picture. Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa isn’t as cool here as he was as Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat, but he is very regal. Viewers may recognize Randall Duk Kim from The Matrix sequels, and he is just as meek here. Finally, Ken Watanabe’s Chairman deserves to be the object of Sayuri’s desire, as his performance puts his charisma to full use. So for a role call of the cast, that’s Aku, Shang Tsung, The Key Maker, and Rah’s Al Ghoul all in one movie.

Memoirs of a Geisha is a tremendously underrated film that deserved every award it received at the Oscars. Beautiful really doesn’t even cover the production design and cinematography. Even if the narrative can’t quite live up that standard, it does a fine job of enthralling the viewer with Sayuri’s ascent to greatness. Memoirs of a Geisha is a thoroughly satisfying look into a hidden world. With all its faults, the journey still feels fascinating.

Score: 8.0 /10

The DVD:

The Video

The print in this disc is as stunning as the film’s cinematography. All the majestic colors show up bright and beautiful. A masterful job done here by Sony. Memoirs of a Geisha is presented in Anamorphic Widescreen with an aspect ratio of 2.35:1.

The Audio

John Williams score is given vibrant attention here; never losing a single moment to a poor mix. The sound is as good as the picture. The soundtrack is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Audio Commentaries, 11 Featurettes

Audio commentary with director Rob Marshall and choreographer John DeLuca – This is a decent commentary, with Marshall going over how many times the film had to take a different direction from Arthur Golden’s novel. There are enough anecdotes as well as production insight to keep you interested.

Production Audio Commentary featuring Colleen Atwood – Costume Design, John Myhre – Production Design, Pietro Scalia – Editor – This is actually the superior commentary as each person here has some real interesting tidbits about their side of the film. My Favorite is Production Designer John Myhre, who talks about how most of the time sets can be built with cheaper materials and be painted over. This apparently would not do for this production as sets were built with extreme authenticity and called for the best wood and so fourth.

Sayuri’s Other Journey: From the Novel to the Screen – This Featurette runs about 14-15 minutes and covers the story from its earliest conception through its elaborate production. Arthur Golden and Rob Marshall both have very interesting interviews here.

The Road to Japan – The Featurette covers the scouting trip that film makers took to look for the different locations to shoot in Japan. I’m glad much of the film was actually shot on location, giving the film more authenticity.

Geisha Bootcamp – This is a detailed mini-doc on the arduous training the actresses had to endure to become convincing geisha. Poor Zhang Ziyi had to have gone through hell to be able to walk in those platform shoes.

Building the Hanamachi – The Hanamachi of old Kyoto from the novel was created in beautiful detail and this Featurette goes over all the details.

The Look of a Geisha – Costume Designer Colleen Atwood won an Oscar for this film and this Featurette shows you how tireless she worked to get that honor. This also details how hard it was for the women of the film to even wear these costumes.

The Music of Memoirs – After seeing this film, I’m firmly in the camp of people that thinks that John Williams should have won for this film. His score for Geisha is surprisingly authentic and free of the trivial sentimentality that haunted his scores for films such as The Patriot. Normally, Williams’ best work is when he is working for either Steve Spielberg or George Lucas. I’m ecstatic to find out his creativity outside of those films has not dwindled in the least. This Featurette also has a really funny moment where Rob Marshall recalls Williams asking if it would be okay if he hired Yo-Yo Ma and Itzhak Perlman for the soundtrack. Marshall states that after he recovered from fainting he gave his consent.

A Geisha Dance – The dances in this film were choreographed meticulously and this mini-doc goes over how hard everyone worked to get them to look good. All their hard work did not go to waste.

The World of Geisha – This is perhaps the most interesting of the Featurettes, as it looks at the history of the Geisha throughout time. The mini-doc also goes into the life of Liza Dalby, the only Western woman ever to be accepted as a geisha. She was a technical advisor on the film and has lived a fascinating life.

The Way of the Sumo – It would be so cool to see a movie on the life of a Sumo Wrestler. When’s someone going to make that movie? Amazingly, film makers on Memoirs of a Geisha were able to get some of the greatest Sumo Wrestlers in the world for their movie. Most interesting is Shuhei Nagao, one of the greatest Wrestlers to have ever lived, even though he is tiny compared to other Sumo. His entry into professional Sumo almost didn’t happen as he was originally deemed too short. Not to be denied, the man actually had an implant put into the top of his head to be allowed to wrestle.

A Day with Chef Nobu Matsuhisa – A World renown chef, Nobu Matsuhisa wanted very much to be a part of this movie. He got his wish and received a cameo appearance. This looks at a day in the life of this gourmet chef, from buying his fish to running his establishment.

Featurette on director Rob Marshall – Apparently, everyone loves Rob Marshall, or you would think so after this particular Featurette. This is a nice look at the Director’s work and how his work ethic inspires everyone around him.

Score: 7.5 /10

Robert Sutton feels the most at home when he's watching some movie scumbag getting blown up, punched in the face, or kung fu'd to death, especially in that order. He's a founding writer for the movies section of Insidepulse.com, featured in his weekly column R0BTRAIN's Badass Cinema as well as a frequent reviewer of DVDs and Blu-rays. Also, he's a proud Sony fanboy, loves everything Star Wars and Superman related and hopes to someday be taken seriously by his friends and family.