Very dramatic with some scenes. I really liked the movie approach where they attempt to Westernize it up a bit. I know that many people find this to be a sell-out but you know, I'm looking at the story line, the actresses, the scenery, the costumes and not so much of the controversial themes. Memoirs was really about freeing love and fighting your way to get to that point. You will need a lot of strength and courage and at times, sacrifice in order to obtain your goal. In essence, this is an Asian-themed production and it's being premiered world-wide as we speak. (with exception to China). So to all the Asian fellows out there- this is just a stepping stone for the ASIAN REPRESENTATION!

  Memoirs of a Geisha will forever be remembered as the movie that could have lived up to its potential, but did not.  Instead, it falls way short of what it should have been, and ends up as a big disappointment.  Not even an All – Star female cast consisting of Zhang Ziyi (House of Flying Daggers, 2046), Michelle Yeoh (Tomorrow Never Dies, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), and Gong Li (The Emperor and the Assassin, Farewell My Concubine) could save this film.  
 The movie is based on the best selling novel written by Arthur Golden.  It chronicles the life of a young girl named Chiyo (played initially by Suzuka Ohgo), who is sold to a geisha house in Kyoto, Japan.  While there, she runs into the evil yet stunningly beautiful Hatsumomo (Gong Li).  Hatsumomo plans to ruin Chiyo’s life, because she knew that Chiyo would be her competition from the second she saw her blue eyes, which made her a rarity among geisha, let alone Asians in general.  Mameha (Michelle Yeoh) takes Chiyo under her wings and transforms her into Sayuri (Zhang Ziyi), the most celebrated and sought after geisha ever.

  On the outside, Memoirs of a Geisha excels.  The movie has it all, featuring beautiful scenery, vibrant colors, exquisite musical scores, and gorgeous lead actresses. To put it simply, think of super models pre - anorexia.  Yeah, that’s how pretty the movie is.  But a pretty movie does not always translate into a good movie.  Plagued by a poor script, a stripped down story line and some shoddy acting, this is where the movie is not so good looking.  Many of those who have read the book will be sorely disappointed at the fact that the writers basically skimmed through the story line as much as possible.    The movie has about 30 percent of what was actually in the book, and still manages to be 144 minutes long.  We call that an anomaly ladies and gentleman.  Director Rob Marshall (Chicago) and his crew decided to play it safe and sadly, it did not pay dividends.  You can also blame the acting on the fact that the cast is not speaking in their native tongue, and also the fact that the lead Japanese characters are being played by Chinese actresses, which surely makes a lot of sense to everyone.  Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh and Gong Li cannot speak English as if it were second nature because it is still foreign to them.  And man, what the hell happened to Ken Watanabe (The Chairman)?  The only bright spots are Zhang’s dancing, which, according to Rob Marshall, was the main reason she landed the lead role, and the exterior.  Okay, maybe that was a little exaggerated, because there are some parts of the movie that will make you feel all emotional, and definitely deserves merit, but there are also other parts that will just . . . bore the living hell out of you.

  The whole reason why the novel was such a big hit and was so popular was because of its immense and intriguing storyline.  The novel succeeded in what the movie failed, which was to detail the life of a certain geisha.  The movie made it seem like it was just a big catfight between Sayuri and Hatsumomo (even that scene in the movie can not be forgiven for its poor choreography) and a sad side story about Sayuri’s love life.   Again, what made the book so popular was its story, and the movie could not accomplish that.  It used too little of what the actual story really was, and just made it a long and drawn out version of snippets from the original work.  Even if you did not read the book, the other elements of the movie, such as the acting falls short of what it could have been.  When you do that, it usually translates into a big flop, and that is exactly what happened to the movie.  Knowing that the filming of the movie took place in California, when the story is based in Japan, does not help its credibility either.  Once again, the movie does have bright spots, albeit just a few.  If only the movie had even just 60% of what it should have had.

I thought Memoirs of a Geisha was a wonderful movie. Until you get into what it is based on. A memoir of a Geisha was based on the novel by Arthur Golden. When in reality this story is the like of Mineko Iwasaki (with a few changes made). If you read Iwasaki's "Geisha, A Life" you can see the similarities, even if you have only see the movie. I do not care to read the book but I may go against my better judgment and read it anyways. I think the movie was gorgeous. Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh are all gorgeous women. Yet the movie would still be beautiful with less amazing women in their roles. While the story may be a rip off the movie was lovely. The fact that people are assaulting it because the actors are Chinese but the subject is Japanese is insane. Why should it matter? It was a very moving story of a young woman never giving up on the one she loved.

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