Movie Reviews: Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
Starring: Zhang Ziyi, Ken Watanabe, Michelle Yeoh, Koji Yakusho, Youki Kudoh, Kaori Momoi, Li Gong
Directed by: Rob Marshall
Going to see a movie like Memoirs of a Geisha is one of those sacrifices a man makes every so often so that he can live an otherwise comfortable and blessed life. True, were I a single man, I never would have considered watching this movie, but then I'd be too busy with the associated crippling depression and starvation (and masturbation, I suppose) to have the time anyway. So if the trade off for wedded bliss is having to go see a period-piece chick flick on our vacation, I'll take it.
I actually wasn't that resistant to go see this movie. I certainly wasn't interested in it, but since the book was a big deal when it first came out in 1997, I figured I could at least familiarise myself with one of the popular novels of my lifetime without ever reading anything about it. So, that's a plus. Also, it's an obvious Oscar-baiting flick, so at least I'd know something about it if it were to get into the Oscar race (yeah, I know the Oscars are for shit and all, but I still kinda follow it because it has in the past pointed me in the direction of excellent movies I would have otherwise missed).
Basically, I went into the movie with a decent attitude, hoping to see something worthwhile. But, to no surprise at all, I ended up seeing a movie that wasn't for me. At all. I didn't care much about the characters, or the story, or the trials of the characters set up by the story. Lucky for me, it was long. Its 2 hours and 15 minutes felt about half an hour longer than King Kong's 3 hours and 7 minutes. I've sat through worse and more boring, to be certain. But, if the movie had abruptly ended half an hour earlier, I really don't think my opinion of the movie would have changed. Just half an hour less I'd have to sit there not caring.
Which isn't to say the movie is bad, because it's not. The performances are all good, with Zhang Ziyi being particularly sympathetic in the lead role. The photography of the movie is truly breathtaking, it even managed to grab my attention at times. But, overall, the film is fairly mediocre. Obviously, I'm not naturally-inclined to love a movie like this, but objectively, there's nothing spectacular about this movie (other than perhaps the photography). It wanted to be Academy-bait, but ultimately, I can only see it getting nominations for its standard John Williams score, and some art direction categories. Perhaps Zhang Ziyi could get an actress nomination as well (she has gotten a Golden Globe nod), but only because good parts for women are notoriously slim.
I guess I should address the one controversy surrounding the film, that it features Chinese actresses in Japanese roles. Some people think this is a big deal; I don't. We use European actors interchangeably between countries, be they German, British, French, etc. Heck, we have a Welsh Batman, and no one is complaining. I think it would be more racist to apply a different standard to Asian actors than we do Caucasian ones, in that they can only play characters from their particular nationality. It's called "acting", people. There's few enough Asian roles in Hollywood as it is, now we want to limit them to only Chinese roles? I say, if Sean Connery can play a Russian sub commander, than Michelle Yeoh can play a Japanese geisha.
2.5/5
Related:
Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
The Last Samurai (2003)
Mona Lisa Smile (2003)