Last
night I went to see the film gMemoirs of a Geishah,
or gSayurih as it is titled in Japan. Prior to seeing
the movie I read a review in The Japan times that stated,
gDirector Rob Marshall called it a gfableh in an effort
to pre-empt possible criticism that he wouldn't know
a geisha if she hit him in the face with her shamisenh.
I could not have summed it up any
better. (Without even taking into account the fact that
in Kyoto geisha are more accurately referred to as ggeikoh)
Memoirs of a Geisha maybe is not a
very descriptive title for this movie since the deep
and complex world of geisha is hardly even touched upon.
Itfs more of a love story set in Japan than a movie
about geisha as the title would suggest, and as the
book so eloquently described.
Visually, the film is stunning. But
in order for it to achieve this level of gglitz and
glamourh it sadly takes quite a departure from reality.
Like a cake that is all frosting and no dough it has
a very hard time standing up on its own. Everything
seems to be at least based on reality, yet cranked up
a few thousand notches for effect.
The architecture is overly stylized, no doubt in an
effort to make the settings appears as exotic as possible.
And letfs not even talk about the kimono, dancing, and
hairstyles, all of which at times appear to be the directors
own idea of what a punk/goth version of a geiko might
look like (and act like). Think Crouching tiger hidden
dragon meets the rocky horror picture show and you get
somewhat of an idea of what I am trying to say.
There are some scenes that were filmed
in Japan. Fushimi Inari shrine and the gardens of Heianji
to name a couple, but for the most part it was filmed
in a newly constructed set of the Hanamachi in Thousand
Oaks California. (I heard that they were not allowed
to shoot in Gion.)
One thing they did get right though
was the overhead power linesc. The film sets are loaded
with them, just like the real Japan.
This is a movie I really wanted to
love, but after seeing it I merely liked it.
I completely understand that it is
darn near impossible to fit an entire book into less
than 3 hours on film. Some creative license always has
to be taken in telling the story for both dramatic effect
as well as time constraints. But in my view the subject
that should have been central to the film (geisha and
what it means to be one) was actually just a minor part.
Instead the director choose to rehash the classic story
of forbidden love that we have all seen time and again.
So in short the film looks to be turning
out to be a major let down. Too bad really seeing as
the The book was excellent.
But I guess Hollywood once again thought they know what
was right for us (the public) and they went ahead and
bastardized the thing. Dumbing it down and jazzing it
up so as to appeal to the average moving going public
who it seems they assume have an attention span about
as long as it takes to go through 1,000 yen in a pachinko
parlor.
I guess that Rob Marshal just does
not understand that the beauty of Kyoto is not about
glamour and flash, but rather understatement and things
left unseen, unsaid, or implied. Architecture is simple
to the point of being spartan. Like Haiku poetry, things
Japanese, and Kyoto in particular are all about following
the "less is more" philosophy. That is the
real allure of Kyoto.
Illusions, innuendo, subtlety, and
grace. These are a geiko's tools of the trade. While
I donft profess to be an expert on the subject, I have
spent enough time in the real Gion to know that Mr.
Marshall gave us his artistic impression of the subject,
and not a factual view.
But if it serves to further fuel foreign
interest in Japan and things Japanese then it will have
served its purpose in my view.
gLost in Translationh, now there is
a great movie. Maybe if Rob Marshall had gotten Bill
Murray to play the part of Sayuri instead of casting
Zhang Ziyic. Now that would be a film that I would just
have to see again and again. He could even throw in
a couple of lines from Caddy Shack.
Think about it. The gopher becomes a tanuki, caddy's
become maikoc The possibilities are endless I tell you!
Endless!
Comment 34
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