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Memoirs of a Geisha is an Academy Award and Grammy Award-winning movie adaptation of the novel of the same name, produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment and directed by Rob Marshall. It was released in the United States on December 9, 2005 by Columbia Pictures, DreamWorks and Spyglass Entertainment. It stars Zhang Ziyi, Ken Watanabe, Gong Li, Michelle Yeoh, Youki Kudoh, and Suzuka Ohgo. Ohgo plays the younger Sayuri in the movie, which was filmed in southern and northern California and in several locations in Kyoto, including the Kiyomizu temple and the Fushimi Inari shrine. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (550x817, 88 KB) Licensing File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
Rob Marshall is a director. ...
Steven Allan Spielberg (born December 18, 1946)[1] is an American film director and producer. ...
Douglas Wick is an American movie producer whose work includes producing the 5 Academy Award-winning 2000 film Gladiator, Stuart Little, and the 3 Academy Award-winning Memoirs of a Geisha. ...
Robin Swicord (born 1950 in Columbia, South Carolina) is an American screenwriter and film director. ...
Shizuko Hoshi is a Japanese American actress and theatre director living in Southern California. ...
Zhang Ziyi (ç« å怡; pinyin: ZhÄng ZÇyÃ) (born February 9, 1979 in Beijing, China) is one of the most well-known Chinese film actresses working today, with a string of Chinese and international hits to her name. ...
Ken Watanabe (born October 21, 1959) (Japanese: 渡辺謙) is a Japanese theater, TV, and film actor. ...
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Gong Gong Li (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (born December 31, 1965) is a Chinese film actress. ...
Dato Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Cantonese (Yale romanization): yèuhng jà kìhng; born August 6, 1962) is a Chinese Malaysian actress and dancer, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s. ...
Youki Kudoh[1] , born January 17, 1971) is a Japanese actress and singer. ...
Suzuka ÅŒgo Suzuka ÅŒgo ), born 5 August 1993, in Kanagawa, Japan is a Japanese child actress. ...
Williams conducting the London Symphony Orchestra during the recording of the score for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. ...
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Ma Yo-Yo Ma (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (b. ...
Itzhak Perlman (born August 31, 1945) is an Israeli-American violinist, conductor, and pedagogue. ...
Dion Beebe is an Australian cinematographer. ...
Biography Pietro Scalia was born in Sicily in 1960. ...
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Buena Vista International is a division of The Walt Disney Company which handles non-U.S. distribution of Disney films. ...
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This article is about the film studio. ...
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is the 343rd day of the year (344th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...
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The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...
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Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
This article is about the book. ...
Steven Allan Spielberg (born December 18, 1946)[1] is an American film director and producer. ...
Amblin Entertainment logo. ...
Rob Marshall is a director. ...
is the 343rd day of the year (344th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...
The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ...
This article is about the film studio. ...
Spyglass Entertainment is an American film and television production company, Co-founded by Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum, where they serve as Co-CEOs. ...
Zhang Ziyi (ç« å怡; pinyin: ZhÄng ZÇyÃ) (born February 9, 1979 in Beijing, China) is one of the most well-known Chinese film actresses working today, with a string of Chinese and international hits to her name. ...
Ken Watanabe (born October 21, 1959) (Japanese: 渡辺謙) is a Japanese theater, TV, and film actor. ...
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Gong Gong Li (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (born December 31, 1965) is a Chinese film actress. ...
Dato Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Cantonese (Yale romanization): yèuhng jà kìhng; born August 6, 1962) is a Chinese Malaysian actress and dancer, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s. ...
Youki Kudoh[1] , born January 17, 1971) is a Japanese actress and singer. ...
Suzuka ÅŒgo Suzuka ÅŒgo ), born 5 August 1993, in Kanagawa, Japan is a Japanese child actress. ...
Kyoto ) is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. ...
Kiyomizu-dera Kiyomizu-dera (or Kiyomizudera, 清水寺) refers to several Buddhist temples but most commonly to Otowasan Kiyomizudera (音羽山清水寺) in Eastern Kyoto, and one of the best known sights of the city. ...
The gates at Fushimi Inari Fushimi Inari Taisha ) is a shinto jinja (shrine) dedicated to the spirit Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. ...
The Japanese release of the film was titled "Sayuri," based on the main character who was renamed as Sayuri in the movie.
The DVD was released on March 28, 2006. is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Plot
In 1929 Japan, nine-year-old Sakamoto Chiyo and her older sister Sakamoto Satsu are sold by their parents to Mr. Tanaka, who in turn, sells them to the Nitta Okiya. Chiyo is accepted, while her sister Satsu is sold to a brothel in the next hanamachi. Chiyo meets Auntie, Mrs. Nitta, or "Mother," the mistress of the okiya; Pumpkin, a girl about her own age in training to be a geisha; and the only resident geisha, the beautiful but very cruel Hatsumomo. Chiyo has the potential to become a great geisha, especially because of her unusual, beautiful blue-grey eyes. But because Hatsumomo cannot tolerate rivals, she abuses Chiyo, forcing her to destroy a kimono which belongs to Hatsumomo's bitter rival, Mameha. An okiya ) is the lodging house a maiko or geisha lives in during the length of her nenki, or contract. ...
A brothel, also known as a bordello or whorehouse, is an establishment specifically dedicated to prostitution, providing the prostitutes a place to meet and to have sex with the clients. ...
A hanamachi (花街) is a Japanese geisha district. ...
Typical nape make-up Geisha ) or Geigi ) are traditional, female Japanese entertainers, whose skills include performing various Japanese arts, such as classical music and dance. ...
A traditional wedding kimono The kimono literally something worn) is the national costume of Japan. ...
After Chiyo is beaten for ruining the kimono, Hatsumomo tells her where her sister has been living. Chiyo sneaks out of the okiya and goes to Satsu's brothel and they plot to run away together the next day. On her way back into the okiya, Chiyo notices the door to the storage shed is open. She pushes the door open and reveals Hatsumomo and her boyfriend entangled on the floor. Since it is forbidden for geisha to have lovers, Hatsumomo knows she will be in trouble if he is caught in the okiya. As he's leaving, Mother wakes up and comes outside. Before she gets to the shed, Hatsumomo tucks some money into Chiyo's robe and tells Mother she caught her stealing and plotting to run away with her sister. As Mother starts to beat Chiyo, Chiyo exclaims that she saw Hatsumomo with her boyfriend in the shed. Mother commands Auntie to take Hatsumomo's arms, and she confirms Hatsumomo had sex with someone. Mother commands that Auntie must make sure that the okiya gates have been locked. The next day, Chiyo desperately tries to think of a way to meet Satsu, so she tries to escape over the rooftops, but falls off the roof, breaking her arm in doing so and is discovered. As punishment for this betrayal, she must work as a maid and no longer attend geisha school. Shortly after Mother tells her that, Mother gives Chiyo a letter from Mr. Tanaka, and Chiyo learns her parents have both departed. A few days later, as she cries in the street, Chairman Iwamura Ken encounters her and shows her some kindness, offering her a cup of sweet ice. After they eat it, he hands her some change wrapped in his handkerchief. It was quite a large sum of change, but Chiyo leaves it as an offering at the temple. After this, she ardently wishes to become a geisha, in order to become a member of the Chairman's world. When Pumpkin becomes a maiko (apprentice geisha) and Hatsumomo's "younger sister" (protégé), the began entertaining at teahouses. On the night of Pumpkin's debut, she forgets her Shamisan, and Chiyo runs behind her to give her the instrument. After returning the instrument to Pumpkin, she peeks into the teahouse and is discovered by the Chairman as she huddles outside the door. She runs off, stopping a few minutes later and revealing that she has the Chairmen's handkerchief in her robe. Maiko (apprentice geisha) in Kyoto, Japan Geisha (芸者) are traditional Japanese artist-entertainers. ...
Soon after, Mameha visits the okiya to talk about training Chiyo to be a geisha; Chiyo becomes Mameha's younger sister and protégé and is introduced to Mameha's danna, the Baron. As an apprentice geisha, Chiyo receives the new name of Sayuri. She begins entertaining at teahouse, but Hatsumomo and Pumpkin begin showing up at the tea houses. At one point, Sayuri says something very clever at Hatsumomo's expense and all the men in the teahouse laugh. That night, Hatsumomo comes into Chiyo's room, slaps her across the face and says "I shall destroy you." The next day, Mameha is dismayed to hear that Hatsumomo is bent on Sayuri's destruction, so she tries to come up with a plan to keep Sayuri out of Hatsumomo's reach She arranges for Sayuri to meet the Chairman again, as well as his best friend and business partner Nobu Toshikazu, at a sumo match. Hatsumomo shows up at the sumo match, and Mameha instructs Sayuri to be close to Nobu in order to mislead Hatsumomo, since Nobu is covered with hideous burn-scars from fighting in Manchuria, and Hatsumomo would never steal him away from Sayuri. A few days later, Mameha tells Sayuri to cut her leg so that they can go to a Doctor that Mameha knows, nicknamed Dr. Crab. That night, she takes Sayuri to a tea house, where she will present Nobu with an ekubo, a sweet rice cake that means her mizuage is ripe for selling. Mameha also encourages a relationship with Dr. Crab, attempting to have Sayuri present him with ekubo. Hatsumomo is clever, though, and discovers the relationship Mameha is attempting to forge between the Doctor and Sayuri. She spreads terrible rumors about Sayuri to the Doctor, and when Mameha and Sayuri arrive at the teahouse to entertain the Doctor, he turns them away. Through Pumpkin, Sayuri later learns what Hatsumomo has done. She's distraught, but Mameha says that there are plenty of other fish in the sea; they just need to cast a wider net. This page is a candidate to be copied to Wiktionary. ...
For the island in Scotland, see Danna, Scotland. ...
The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...
All the while, Mameha knows that Mother needs to adopt one of the geishas in the okiya as her heir and Mameha is determined to prevent Hatsumomo from becoming the heir and ruining Sayuri's future. Unfortunately, Pumpkin has already been promised the okiya, but she would just act as a puppet to Hatsumomo. Thus, Sayuri must betray her friendship with Pumpkin and work hard to become the okiya's most valuable asset. Mameha arranges for her to dance the lead role in the upcoming spring dances. The passion in which she dances catches Dr Crab's attention again, as well as many other prominent men. Eventually, Mameha creates a bidding war for Sayuri's mizuage (her virginity), between Dr. Crab and Nobu, although after Sayuri's appearance in the spring dances, the Baron is also interested. Dr. Crab pays a record amount of money, the record price for her mizuage aids in this. She becomes the most celebrated geisha in Gion, increasing Hatsumomo's jealousy. One day, Sayuri discovers Hatsumomo in her room holding the Chairman's handkerchief over a candle; a fight ensues. Hatsumomo knocks over the candle, starting a massive fire. She leaves the okiya, never to return. Hatsumomo's fate is never revealed, although in the book the movie is based on it alludes that she became a prostitute, and eventually "drank herself to death." The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...
Sayuri's new status as the head of the okiya and the most famous geisha is short-lived when World War II breaks out. The Chairman provides Sayuri and Mameha with a place of safety, though they must work as servants. After the war, Nobu approaches Sayuri and enlists her help. He and the Chairman have been trying to rebuild their business, but in order to do it, they need American funding. Sayuri meets up with Mameha and Pumpkin again and they becomes geisha once more. Sayuri is about to tell the Chairman how she feels about him when she is introduced to Colonel Derricks to convince him to invest in the Chairman's and Nobu's company. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki TÅjÅ Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...
For other uses, see Colonel (disambiguation). ...
Nobu tells Sayuri he wants to be her danna, the man who sponsors a geisha. However, Sayuri still has feelings for the Chairman, and schemes to prevent Nobu from becoming her danna. She asks Pumpkin to bring Nobu to a place where he will "discover" Sayuri and the Colonel together in a passionate embrace. Pumpkin instead brings the Chairman because she resents Sayuri for interfering with her plans to become the heir to the okiya. When Nobu hears of this, he cannot forgive Sayuri. The Chairman eventually reveals that he knew all along that Sayuri was once Chiyo, the little girl to whom he showed kindness. Only because he told Mameha to seek out the girl with the blue-grey eyes did Chiyo become the geisha Sayuri. The film ends with Sayuri and the Chairman embracing, sharing a kiss and then walking away together.
Casting controversy Controversy arose during casting of the film when some of the most prominent roles, including those of the geishas Sayuri, Hatsumomo and Mameha, did not go to Japanese actresses. Zhang Ziyi (Sayuri) and Gong Li (Hatsumomo) are both Chinese, whereas Michelle Yeoh (Mameha) is an ethnic Chinese from Malaysia. More notable is the fact that all three were already prominent fixtures in Chinese cinema. The history of Chinese language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. ...
The film-makers defended the decision, however, and attributed "acting ability and star power" as their main priorities in casting the roles and director Rob Marshall compared it to Irish-Mexican actor Anthony Quinn being cast as a Greek man in Zorba the Greek[1]. For other people named Anthony Quinn see Anthony Quinn (disambiguation) Anthony Quinn (April 21, 1915 – June 3, 2001) was a two-time Academy Award-winning Mexican/American actor, as well as a painter and writer. ...
Zorba the Greek is a 1964 movie by Michael Cacoyannis, originally titled Alexis Zorbas, based on the novel by Nikos Kazantzakis. ...
Opinion in the Asian community was mixed. To some Chinese, the casting was offensive because they mistook geisha for prostitutes, and because it revived memories of wartime Japanese atrocities. The Chinese government canceled the film's release there because of such connections, and a website denounced star Zhang Ziyi as an "embarrassment to China"[2]. Some Japanese have expressed offense that people of their own nationality had not gotten the roles. Other Asians defended the casting, including the film's main Japanese star Ken Watanabe who said that "talent is more important than nationality" [3]. Other Asian actors such as Sandra Oh have in the past also defended inter-Asian acting. Typical nape make-up Geisha ) or Geigi ) are traditional, female Japanese entertainers, whose skills include performing various Japanese arts, such as classical music and dance. ...
Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ...
Ken Watanabe , born October 21, 1959) is a Japanese Oscar-nominated stage, film, and television actor. ...
Sandra Oh (born July 20, 1971) is a Golden Globe Award-winning and a three-time Emmy Award-nominated Canadian actress. ...
Film critic Roger Ebert pointed out that the film was made by a Japanese-owned company, and that Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi outgross any Japanese actress even in the Japanese box office[4]. Roger Joseph Ebert (born June 18, 1942) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American film critic. ...
On a visit to Tokyo to promote the film, Ziyi Zhang received a mysterious parcel and letter, revealed to have been sent by an elderly Japanese woman who had once worked as a geisha. In her letter, the woman stated that she had been touched by the trailer of the film and expected the movie to bring back fond memories for her and her friends. Inside the parcel were several exquisitely worked antique kimono. Ziyi Zhang was moved to tears by the gesture and sent the woman an invitation to the film's Japanese premiere[5] Zhang Ziyi ZHANG Ziyi (章子怡; pinyin: Zhāng Zǐyí, pronounced like Jahng Dzih-ee) (born February 9, 1979) is a Chinese actress and dancer. ...
A traditional wedding kimono The kimono literally something worn) is the national costume of Japan. ...
Zhang Ziyi ZHANG Ziyi (章子怡; pinyin: Zhāng Zǐyí, pronounced like Jahng Dzih-ee) (born February 9, 1979) is a Chinese actress and dancer. ...
Production
Pre-Production Producer Steven Spielberg had been scheduled to film Memoirs of a Geisha as the follow up to Saving Private Ryan. However fellow Dreamworks executive David Geffen had tried to persuade him not to take on the project as he said I don't think it's good enough for him. Whether or not he was dissuaded from the project he went on to direct Artificial Intelligence: A.I. instead. [6] Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 Academy-Award-winning film set in World War II, directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. ...
David Geffen (born February 21, 1943) is an American record executive, film producer, theatrical producer, philanthropist. ...
The three leading actors (Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh) were put through "Geisha boot camp" before production commenced, during which they were trained in traditional Geisha practices of musicianship, dance, and Japanese tea ceremony. Zhang Ziyi (ç« å怡; pinyin: ZhÄng ZÇyÃ) (born February 9, 1979 in Beijing, China) is one of the most well-known Chinese film actresses working today, with a string of Chinese and international hits to her name. ...
This is a Chinese name; the family name is Gong Gong Li (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (born December 31, 1965) is a Chinese film actress. ...
Dato Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng (traditional Chinese: ; simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Cantonese (Yale romanization): yèuhng jà kìhng; born August 6, 1962) is a Chinese Malaysian actress and dancer, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s. ...
Typical nape make-up Geisha ) or Geigi ) are traditional, female Japanese entertainers, whose skills include performing various Japanese arts, such as classical music and dance. ...
A woman wearing a kimono performs a tea ceremony outdoors, while seated in seiza position. ...
Production Production of the film took place from 29 September 2004 to 31 January 2005. It was decided by the producers that contemporary Japan looked much too modern to film a story which took place in the 1920s and '30s and it would be more cost-effective to create sets for the film on soundstages and locations in the United States, primarily in California. The majority of the film was shot on a large set built on a ranch in Thousand Oaks, California which was a detailed recreation of an early twentieth-century geisha district in Kyoto, Japan. Most interior scenes were filmed in Culver City, California at the Sony Pictures Studios lot. Other locations in California included San Francisco, Moss Beach, Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge, Sacramento, Yamashiro's Restaurant in Hollywood, the Japanese Gardens at the Huntington Library and Gardens in San Marino, and Downtown Los Angeles at the Belasco Theater on Hill Street. Towards the end of production, some scenes were shot in Kyoto, Japan. Thousand Oaks can refer to either of the following locations: Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks, Missouri This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Kyoto ) is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. ...
Culver City sign near the intersection of the 405 and the 90. ...
The Sony Pictures Studios are located on 10202 West Washington Boulevard in Culver City, California. ...
This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ...
A panorama of Moss Beach Beach within Fitzgerald Marine Reserve looking south Moss Beach is a coastal census-designated place in San Mateo County, California, with a year 2000 census population of 1953. ...
Descanso Gardens located in the Los Angeles suburb of La Canada is a 25 acre (101,000 m²) Camellia forest. ...
La Cañada Flintridge is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. ...
Sacramento is a Spanish- and Portuguese-language word meaning sacrament; it is a common toponym in parts of the world where those tongues were or are spoken. ...
Skyline of downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. ...
Kyoto ) is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. ...
Post-Production In post-production one of the tasks of the sound editors was to improve upon the English pronunciation of the international cast. This sometimes involved piecing together different clips of dialogue from other segments of the film to form new syllables from the film's actors, some of whom spoke partially phonetic English when they performed their roles on-set. The achievement of the sound editors earned them an Academy Award nomination for Best Achievement in Sound Editing. Phonetic (pho-NET-ic) is a nationwide voicemail-to-text messaging service available for most digital mobile phones in which a subscriber is provided a custom voice mailbox for the purpose of receiving all incoming voice messages as actual transcribed text for reading via short messaging (also known as SMS...
Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ...
Reaction Despite significant hype prior to release, reviews for Memoirs of a Geisha were generally poor. The film scoring a 35% "Rotten" rating on Rotten Tomatoes[7] and 54/100 on Metacritic.[8] This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...
In the United States, the film managed only $57.0 million during its box office run. The film peaked at 1,654 screens,[citation needed] facing off against "King Kong", "The Chronicles of Narnia" and "Fun with Dick and Jane". During its first week in limited release, the film screening in only 8 theaters clocked up a $85,313 per theater average which made it second in highest per theater averages behind Brokeback Mountain for 2005.[citation needed] International gross reached $158 million.[9] King Kong is a 2005 remake of the 1933 King Kong film about a fictional giant ape called Kong. ...
Fun with Dick and Jane is a 2005 comedy film, and remake of the 1977 film of the same name. ...
This article is about the motion picture. ...
Banned by the Chinese government The film was originally scheduled to be shown in cinemas in the People's Republic of China on February 9, 2006. The Chinese State Administration of Radio, Film and Television decided to ban the film on February 1, 2006 considering the film as "too sensitive." In doing so it overturned a November decision to approve the film for screening.[10] is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
The State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television, or SARFT, (Chinese: 国家广æ’电影电视总局令; Pinyin: ) is an executive branch under the State Council of the Peoples Republic of China. ...
is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Newspaper sources, such as the Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post and the Shanghai Youth Daily, quoted the fears that the film may be banned by censors; there were concerns that the casting of Chinese actresses as geishas could rouse anti-Japan sentiment and stir up feelings over Japanese wartime actions in China, especially the use of Chinese women as forced sex workers.[11] For other uses, see Shanghai (disambiguation). ...
Anti-Japanese sentiment refers to the view of the Japanese people or of the Japanese nation with suspicion or hostility. ...
Combatants China United States1 Soviet Union2 Empire of Japan Collaborationist Chinese Army3 Commanders Chiang Kai-shek, Chen Cheng, Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, Li Zongren, Xue Yue, Bai Chongxi, Peng Dehuai, Joseph Stilwell, Claire Chennault, Aleksandr Vasilevsky Hirohito, Fumimaro Konoe, Hideki Tojo, Kotohito Kanin, Matsui Iwane, Hajime Sugiyama, Shunroku Hata...
Alternate Japanese name Chinese name Korean name Comfort women ) or military comfort women ) is a euphemism for the thousands of women who were forced into sexual slavery for Japanese military brothels during World War II.[1] There is still some disagreement about exactly how many women were victimized. ...
Awards and nominations Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ...
- Won: Best Original Score - Motion Picture (John Williams)
- Nominated: Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama (Zhang, Ziyi)
National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures was founded in 1909 in New York City, just 13 years after the birth of cinema, to protest New York City Mayor George McClennans revocation of moving-picture exhibition licenses on Christmas Eve 1908. ...
- Won: Best Supporting Actress (Gong Li)
Satellite Awards The Satellite Awards are an annual award given by the International Press Academy. ...
- Won: Outstanding Screenplay, Adapted (Robin Swicord)
- Nominated: Outstanding Motion Picture, Drama
- Nominated: Outstanding Director (Rob Marshall)
- Nominated: Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama (Zhang Ziyi)
- Nominated: Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role, Drama (Gong Li)
- Nominated: Outstanding Art Direction & Production Design (John Myhre)
- Nominated: Outstanding Cinematography (Robert Elswit)
- Nominated: Outstanding Costume Design (Colleen Atwood)
- Nominated: Outstanding Original Score (John Williams)
Academy Awards Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ...
- Won: Best Achievement in Art Direction
- Won: Best Achievement in Cinematography
- Won: Best Achievement in Costume Design
- Nominated: Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
- Nominated: Best Achievement in Sound
- Nominated: Best Achievement in Sound Editing
BAFTA Awards The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ...
- Won: The Anthony Asquith Award for achievement in film music (John Williams)
- Won: Cinematography (Dion Beebe)
- Won: Costume design (Colleen Atwood)
- Nominated: Best actress in a leading role (Zhang Ziyi)
- Nominated: Production design
- Nominated: Make Up and Hair
Screen Actors Guild Awards The Actor: The Screen Actors Guild Award Statue The Screen Actors Guild Awards are an annual award given by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to recognize outstanding performances by members. ...
- Nominated: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role (Zhang Ziyi)
NAACP Image Awards The NAACP Image Award is an award presented annually by the NAACP to honor the top African-Americans in film, television, music and literature. ...
- Nominated: Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture (Zhang Ziyi)
Differences in the novel - In the novel, the Chairman gives Chiyo the money for ice, and she buys it herself. However, in the film, the Chairman buys it with her.
- Nobu has only one arm in the book, yet he has not lost a limb in the movie. His face still remains scarred, though.
- In the book it is frequently said that maids also live in the Okiya along with the protagonists, while in the movie, maids are seen only on the day of Chiyo's debut as Sayuri.
- The fire scene (Sayuri's room bursts into flame after a scuffle between her and Hatsumomo) that leads to Hatsumomo's downfall doesn't happen in the book. The book portrays the downfall of Hatsumomo as a slow downward spiral culminating with a final push from Mameha and Sayuri. Hatsumomo was finally expelled from the Okiya when she attacked an important client one night. In the novel, it is rumored that Hatsumomo ended up being a prostitute, while in the movie her fate is never mentioned. The last scene of Hatsumomo in the film, is when she leaves the Okiya after Sayuri and Mother put out the fire, with Sayuri looking at her out the window as she leaves.
- In the novel, Sayuri does not discard the Chairman's handkerchief, which is how she finally reveals her true identity to the Chairman. In the movie, it is almost burned when Hatsumomo puts it above a candle, leading to the fire scene when Sayuri stops her. After Pumpkin betrays her, Sayuri lets it fly away in the wind.
- Hatsumomo's cruel nickname for Chiyo/Sayuri, "Little Miss Stupid," is not used in the film, nor is Pumpkin's geisha name, Hatsumiyo.
- In the novel, it is Sayuri who gives Pumpkin her nickname, but in the film, Auntie and Mother are already calling her by that name when Sayuri arrives at the Okiya.
- In the novel, it is also Sayuri who gives Dr. Crab his nickname, prior to the way the doctor looks like in the novel.
- In the film, it isn't revealed how Granny dies. Instead, it is said that she has died when Mameha arrives at the Okiya to discuss Chiyo's geisha training with Mother. In the book, she actually is killed from electrocution by a heater ironically sold to the Okiya by the Iwamura Electric Company. Mameha, visiting the Okiya to pay her respects, finally finds the blue-eyed girl described to her by the Chairman.
- The transitions between the different stages of a geisha's career are rushed in the film; the mizuage does not signify the 'graduation' from maiko to geisha in the book, whereas it does in the film - after her mizuage, when Sayuri returns to the Okiya, Mother tells her she is a full geisha now.
- Little mention is made in the film of Sayuri's career as a full geisha.
- In the novel, Sayuri and her sister are sold off after Chiyo runs into Mr. Tanaka Ichiro, a man whose family owned a store called the Japan Coastal Seafood Company. Struck with awe at her eye color, Mr. Tanaka convinces Chiyo's father to sell his two daughters. The movie skims over these details, and skips to the part where the two girls are torn from their family in the beginning of the film at night in Yoroido. Mrs. Tanaka and Kuniko, their daughter, do not appear in the film, as well as the village of Senzuru.
- In the novel, the man Nobu introduces to Sayuri is a Japanese Minister, Sato. Minister Sato is substituted for Colonel Derricks in the film.
- In the novel, it is unclear as to whether or not Mameha learns of the Baron's undressing of Sayuri, whereas she openly does in the film.
- In the novel, Sayuri actually has two danna, though not at the same time: General Tottori and then the Chairman. Sayuri eventually joins the latter in New York City, permanently residing there and running a teahouse while the Chairman comes and goes. She moves to New York City in order to prevent the Chairman's future son-in-law from not marrying his daughter, the son-in-law believes that there is a possibility that Sayuri has produced an illegitimate son with the Chairman. (Sayuri insinuates that she has, but says it would be in the best interest for everyone if she did not say anything.)
- When she falls off the roof of the Okiya after attempting to run away with Satsu, Chiyo is not beaten. Auntie stays with her while she is lying in bed and reads Mr. Tanaka's letter for her. However, Chiyo does get beaten when Hatsumomo accuses her of stealing money, just before Mother slaps Hatsumomo for having a boyfriend in the Okiya.
- Instead of Granny who usually does the beating, Mother does it. As usual, Auntie interferes, so Chiyo does not get beaten very badly.
- When Mother and Auntie learn of Mameha's kimono being ruined, Mother pours a bucket of water on Chiyo before beating her badly. Auntie then takes over the beating so that Chiyo does not suffer the same fate as her. In the novel, the bucket of water is poured over Chiyo after her runaway attempt.
- When Sayuri embarrasses Hatsumomo, the joke is not about her hair. Instead, when Hatsumomo says 'I was a maiko myself once,' Sayuri responds by saying, 'Of course, but it's been such a very long, long, long, long time.'
- When Sayuri has to cut herself to be able to talk with Dr. Crab, she and Mameha do the wounding themselves whereas Mameha recruits a maid and the cook from her old Okiya to help her create a wound on Sayuri's leg, in the book.
- Even before Mameha visits Mother to talk about Chiyo's training, Pumpkin has already become a maiko while in the book, Pumpkin has yet to become a maiko.
- Mameha's mizuage cost ¥10,000 in the movie and was either ¥7000 or ¥8000 in the book. Also in the book, Sayuri's mizuage cost ¥11,500, but it is ¥15,000 in the movie.
- In the book, Chiyo/Sayuri is the year of the monkey, but in the movie, she is the year of the rooster.
- In the movie, after World War II, Pumpkin is influenced by American culture already - she drinks sake a lot, speaks like an American, and enjoys jazz music.
- The film does not end with Sayuri migrating to New York with the Chairman. Instead, the ending ends with her and the Chairman kissing and strolling together along the river, implying she is still a geisha.
- In the novel, when Hatsumomo is trying to get Chiyo thrown out of the Okiya for stealing, she plants money on her, and then claims Chiyo has stolen her obi brooch, only for the brooch to be found hidden years later. In the film, there is no brooch.
- Sayuri's dance occurring before her mizuage, which is based on the story of a courtier whose wife dies of cold as her husband goes to meet his mistress, is actually performed by Mameha in the novel. Sayuri's dance involves a maiden who falls in love with an enchanted dolphin prince.
- The hanamachi ('flower town,' a town where geisha live and entertain) in which the Nitta okiya is situated is not named in the movie--Sayuri and the other geisha are only described as living in Miyako (Kyoto). In the novel, we are informed that the Nitta okiya is in the Gion hanamachi.
- Hatsumomo interacts with the Baron, Mameha's danna, in the movie, whereas she never meets him in the novel. Also, on the same occasion, a dance Sayuri performs in the teahouse with Mameha on shamisen does not appear in the novel.
- Sayuri and Mameha never confront Dr. Crab about Hatsumomo's lies about Sayuri. Instead, after Sayuri's dance, which the Doctor attends, she asks him never to believe Hatsumomo.
- Uchida, Mameha's friend who is an artist, does not appear in the movie. The poster of Sayuri in the lead role in the dance is instead shown when Hatsumomo hears rumors about it. It is implied that Sayuri does not know about it, because when Hatsumomo angrily tears the poster from the wall and shows it to Mother and Auntie, Sayuri takes it and looks at it with a puzzled expression.
- Mrs. Kishino, the old woman living in the Tatsuyo, does not appear in the film. Satsu's new name, Yukiyo, also does not appear in the film.
- In the novel, when Hatsumomo follows Sayuri with the intention of ruining her career as a geisha, she is heard telling an embarrassing story (in which she pretends that the subject is Sayuri) to a client while in Sayuri's presence. This is not seen in the film.
- The "Urgent Appointment" that Mameha cannot miss is really a scheduled abortion. It is mentioned in the novel after the Baron asks why Mameha cannot go to the Baron's annual party.
- In the movie, Sayuri's relationship with Nobu is seriously downplayed. Also, when the war comes, it is not the Chairman who rescues Sayuri it is Nobu. ALSO at the end of the war, the movie shows Nobu with the piece of concrete from his factory but does not show him giving it as a gift to Sayuri or the fan that she gives him in return.
- In the novel, The baron's undressing of Sayuri is described in much more detail, and Mameha never finds out
Maiko (apprentice geisha) in Kyoto, Japan Geisha (芸者) are traditional Japanese artist-entertainers. ...
The Monkey (申) is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. ...
The Rooster ( 雞 ) is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. ...
Obi (帯, ãŠã³) is a Japanese word referring to several different types of sashes worn with kimono and martial arts uniforms by both men and women. ...
Aquamarine, platinum and diamond brooch/pendant worn by Mrs. ...
A hanamachi (花街) is a Japanese geisha district. ...
Kyoto ) is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. ...
Shirakara Canal in the Gion district, showing the rear of some ochaya Exclusive restaurants line the streets of Gion. ...
Interviews
References - ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4509318.stm
- ^ http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2006-02-01-geisha-canceled-china_x.htm
- ^ http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2006/01/28/watanabe_defends_casting_in_geisha
- ^ http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051215/REVIEWS/51213001/1023
- ^ The Star Online
- ^ Interview with Spielberg, Stephen J. Dubner, Steven Spielberg Interviews, ISBN 1-57806-113-X
- ^ Memoirs of a Geisha (2005). Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-02-25.
- ^ Memoirs of a Geisha (2005). Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-04-15.
- ^ Memoirs of a Geisha. The Numbers: Box Office Data. Retrieved on 2007-02-25.
- ^ http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1699608,00.html
- ^ http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060117/ennew_afp/afpentertainmentchinausjapanfilmgeisha_060117120127 - Yahoo! News
Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...
is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...
is the 105th day of the year (106th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...
is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
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