Amazon Prime Video original film Memoirs of a Geisha was released December 9th, 2005.
#MemoirsofaGeisha made $162.2M at the international box office.
rottentomatoes: 35%
metacritic: 54
imdb: 7.3
oscars: 3 wins
golden globes: 1 win
SAG awards: 1 nomination
Sayuri
Chiyo Sakamoto is sold by her parents to a Geisha house in Kyoto, Japan.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
1 nomination: 2006
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
1 nomination: 2006
“Tanaka-san! Tanaka-san!” — Chiyo
“A story like mine should never be told. For my world is as forbidden as it is fragile. Without its mysteries, it cannot survive. I certainly wasn’t born to the life of a geisha. Like so much of my strange life, I was carried there by the current. The first time I knew my mother was sick was when my father threw the fish back into the sea. That night we went hungry. ‘To understand emptiness,’ he told us.” — Chiyo
“Mother always said my sister, Satsu, was like wood. As rooted to the earth as a sakura tree. But she told me I was like water. Water can carve its way even through stone. And when trapped, water makes a new path. Satsu! Satsu! Satsu! Satsu! Satsu! Satsu! Where is my sister?” — Chiyo
“Let me go! Let me go! Let me go! Let me go! Let me go! I want my sister! Satsu! A what? Where is my sister?” — Chiyo
“Pumpkin, when can I go outside? How will I find Satsu? These are all hers? Nobody told me what a geisha is. It’s freezing cold. Hai. Hai. But she told me to stay out– because your General will say, ‘Hatsumomo, you stink.’ What? Please, tell me where she is.” — Chiyo
“I haven’t done anything. I promise you. I have kept my promise. So tell me, where is she?” — Chiyo
Auntie
“These are the girls from Tanaka? This one, maybe. The other one, no. Show your respect for Mother. You must not speak. I will answer for you. Okasan. Kneel. And head down. Never look her in the face. She is Year of the Rooster. But, Okasan, a little water is good to guard against fire. You won’t have to worry about the okiya burning, losing all your kimono.”
“Go. Pumpkin, keep her quiet. Mother is downstairs. Outside you wear these. Inside, these. We don’t display our naked feet like monkeys. It’s not flesh we’re selling here. This is a geisha house. Remember to always honor this okiya. You listen, you learn. Now get to work. Be quiet. Hatsumomo is sleeping. Tighter!”
“Only reason Mother tolerates Hatsumomo is because she brings in good money. Never forget. It is Hatsumomo who pays for your supper, the clothes on your back. By the time she was 20, she had already earned back her purchase price. Unheard of. She has been the talk of the hanamachi ever since. Certainly not. They belong to the okiya. A kimono like this, made of Tatsumara silk. It would take a lifetime to earn.”
“A geisha needs an elegant wardrode, just like an artist needs ink. If she’s not properly dressed, then she is not a true geisha. You will find out soon enough. I have news for you, child. Mother has determined it is off to school with you. You are to become geisha. Pumpkin! Pumpkin! Pumpkin! I’m going to run. I’m going to find Satsu.”
“Careful! You will hurt yourself more than her! Let me. Kneel. What have you done to Hatsumomo?”
Mother / Granny
“Ah. How old are you? Only nine. Let me see those eyes, huh? Look at me. Too much water. Hmm, these country girls. Too late to send her back now.”
“Chiyo! Pumpkin! Quick, quick! Don’t be late! You will be late. Go. Go. Chiyo. Where is granny’s food? Where have you been? Close the window. Chiyo! Chiyo, come quickly! Hatsumomo is at the bathhouse. Tidy up.”
“Hatsumomo does not run this okiya. Thieving rat! That Kimono was worth… …more than you.”
Pumpkin
“Stop that. Mother will hear you. She’s got a bamboo stick. Shh. Shh. I cried too at first. You know, it is easier if you just… forget everything that happened before you came to the okiya. If you impress Mother and do exactly as she says, she will send you to school to be a geisha. A geisha. Like Hatsumomo. You will get to drink sake and sleep until noon. Probably in another okiya in the hanamachi. Your family sold you to this house. You live here now.”
“Outside the okiya? You can’t. It’s not allowed. You can’t just walk up to every house in the hanamachi. Do you know how many there are? Look. Chiyo. Chiyo-chan. Come. Two nights ago, Hatsumomo had to stay at the teahouse until dawn. That’s what she told Mother. But she was really with a man the whole– “
“This way! Ahh! No, Chiyo-chan, don’t! Ah! You will ruin your own chances. And mine too. Please, stay with me. Mm. Squid. Come on! Look for your sister’s name later.”
Hatsumomo
“Why can’t you be quiet? So… this is the new arrival. A pity she still stinks of fish. Stay out of my room. Your fingers smell. I can’t have you touching my things.”
“Why, look who’s in my room. Did you touch this? I can just hear the General now. ‘Why, Hatsumomo, you used to smell of jasmine. What’s this new perfume? Blowfish?’ I told you never to touch my things. Can’t you understand why?”
“At least you don’t smell as bad as your sister. You know, she was here. She came by looking for you. Was I wrong to ask her to leave? Only if you swear yourself to me first. Yes? Huh? Now, get out.”
“I’m not in the mood for beer. What did you say, Korin? Huh? You’re just jealous someone cares for me. Guess who this belongs to. A geisha as desired as she is ought to keep a close eye on her clothes. Yes. Bribed her maid. There. Pretty Chiyo, come. Chiyo. Come. Now, then, little Chiyo, it’s time to practice your calligraphy. There. Remember, you swore yourself to me. Yes? Don’t let anybody see you. Go, go! This will teach the great Mameha. Come, come.”
“I told you not to let anybody see you. She’s in the next hanamachi… in the house called Tatsuyo. In the pleasure district. Trust me, little Chiyo, you will find her.”
Kyoto, Japan
“Stop here. Sister, yes, from Yoroido. No, no, Chiyo! Chiyo! Chiyo! Chiyo!”
“You are late.”
“Shh. Hatsumomo. You’ll wake the entire house. Your big sister is thirsty. So am I. Go get us some beer. I know what you’re in the mood for, and his name is Koichi.”
“I’m sorry. I forgot. It’s Mameha’s? How did you get it? I can’t. Give it to her.”
