Holiday Leftovers

Just three quick reviews from things I watched (1 theater, 2 rental) over the Holidays. Not sure why I haven't written these reviews yet, but oh well.


Memoirs of a Geisha

Based on the novel by Arthur Golden, Memoirs of a Geisha tells the story of Chiyo (later called Sayuri), a young girl sold to a geisha house, and her rise to become the most desired geisha of all. The film shows the life of a geisha from training to everyday life to becoming famous and acquiring a benefactor. Like almost all facets of life involving more than one person, there are power struggles, politics, manipulating and back-stabbing.

The role of adult Sayuri is played by Zhang Ziyi, who earned a Golden Globe nomination for the film. While all of the cast did an excellent job, the acting highlight in my opinion was Gong Li (Raise the Red Lantern) who played Sayuri's rival Hatsumomo. She owned every scene she was in, convincing the audience to hate her and fear her at the same time, and has won the award for Best Supporting Actress from the National Board of Review. However, no matter how good the acting was, the film truly belonged to those responsible for the look of the film. The cinematographer, the set designer, the costume department, the art department, I don't know. Whoever was responsible for that deserves an amazing amount of praise. The visuals of the film set the tone and shifted seamlessly as the film focused on a child being sold by her parents, the prestige of her rise to become geisha, the impact of World War II on Japanese culture and the characters, and the return to her life as a geisha. For that alone, I would recommend seeing the film, but with reservations. (Reservations: Good film but not great, some creepy relationships, etc.)

Born into Brothels

Focusing on the lives of children in the brothels of Calcutta, India, this documentary really shows the impact that our surroundings and our status in life have on us. The original intent of the filmmaker, Zana Briski, was to document the brothels through her photography. She first ran into problems because many people were apprehensive about having this outsider take pictures of them. As she spent time there, she began to get to know the children who lived at the brothel and began teaching a photography class to them. What she discovered was that these children are walking contradictions. At once they are aware of the horror of their situation saying things like, "I have to make money to get my sister and I out." and "Everyday I am afraid that I will become more like them", while still being able, in that resilient way that only kids can, to continue on despite their surroundings and still be children. The film documents the progress of the children learning photography, an exhibit of their work and Briski's attempts to get them out of the brothels and into schools in order to break the cycle. This documentary is not for everyone and can be horribly upsetting. It takes place almost entirely in a brothel and one of the first things we see is a young girl of 10 or 11 years old saying that when men come to visit her mother, they wonder how long it will be before she is working "on the line" and that they don't think it will be much longer. While I have definitely seen better made documentaries, it is remarkably powerful as it reminds us of what happens, not just in India but anywhere, to children who are forgotten and never given a chance to move beyond their origins.

Fantastic Four

Well, it's a good thing Chiklis was in this, because nothing else made it worth seeing. (Look at me I avoided the obligatory Jessica Alba joke.)


Until later...