A film review of Memoirs Of A Geisha

Memoirs of a geisha is a story about a little girl who grows up, changes her name and becomes Japan’s most famous geisha. The film also concentrates on themes like love, friendship and the tragedy of being a geisha. Rob Marshall directed the movie in 2005 and it won three Oscars. The script is based on Arthur Golden’s novel with the same name.

The leading actors of the film are Zhang Ziyi as the adult version of a girl called Chiyo and Suzuka Ohgo as the child version. Ken Watanabe and Michelle Yeoh are also starring in the movie. In addition John William’s classical but courageous soundtrack fits to the scenes almost perfectly.
In the beginning the main character, Chiyo Sakamoto, has been sold to a geisha house by her poor parents. The intriguing environment is totally new to Chiyo, who still misses her family, especially her sister. Eventually Chiyo gets used to her new life and decides to become a geisha.

The film follows Chiyo’s life from a little girl to an adult. Because the genre of the film is drama, it isn’t everyone’s favourite. The setting, all the costumes and make-ups are beautiful and dramatic. The biggest problem of the film is, however, the language. All the actors are speaking English in the film even though only a couple of them are native speakers. The actors who don’t have English as a mother tongue can’t express themselves so well and that leaves me a bit cold. There are also traditions and other cultural things which are maybe a bit incorrect in the movie. When the viewer remembers that it’s a film, not a documentary, she or he can find the beautiful power behind the historical story.