Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)

Geisha and the Brain-Dead Movie Critics, by Griz B

"Memoirs of a Geisha" is not a great film but a very fine film. Yet you would never know it from reading many of the reviewers and alleged movie critics, who seem so fixated on the notion that "the movie is gorgeous to look at but superficial" that they fail to see the forest for the trees or for that matter the main point of the story. Superficiality of geisha culture is part of the whole point for godsakes. It is a hard, cruel world gilded over with a patina of artifice. In one sense the geisha world is admirable, because the goal of each geisha woman is to become a work of art, adept in the art of conversation, the art of tea ceremony, the art of dancing etc. They are not to be confused with mere prostitutes, but are more the equivalent of the trophy wives of the rich and aimless--kept women. The movie does a superb job of capturing this world of artifice, but what the critics fail to see is that the movie is also adept at capturing a world of pain, especially the one inhabited by the main character, Sayura, who is superbly and beautifully acted by Zhang Ziyi. The movie is about her search for some humanity in the cold, brutal world she inhabits, and about how a little common human decency can go a long way in such a world. It's a great theme and one that many movie critics, who are even dumber than I thought (and all need brain retreads), completely miss. To show how dumb the critics are, there was one critic who put it on his ten WORST movies of the year list--yeah, you read me right--the WORST movies!!!! This guy is so clueless that even a brain retread would not help him. He needs a wholesale brain transplant or, short of that, to be put out to pasture. One of the many things a film like "Geisha" should teach us is to ignore the critics. Instead, go see it! Maybe not as good as "Walk the Line" (which is a mtter of opinion on my part) but damn good nonetheless and a damn sight better than a movie about a lovesick rampaging giant gorilla!