When I saw the previews of Memoirs of a Geisha, I was very excited. I've always been fascinated by their way of life. I really looked forward to seeing the film, and when I finally did, I was shocked and appalled at how deceiving and inaccurate...
[+] Read Full Review

When I saw the previews of Memoirs of a Geisha, I was very excited. I've always been fascinated by their way of life. I really looked forward to seeing the film, and when I finally did, I was shocked and appalled at how deceiving and inaccurate the whole movie was. Everything from the hair to the kimono to the actresses was all wrong. And the even worst thing was Mizuage. For real geisha, mizuage never involved selling of their virginity. Mizuage is a coming-of-age ceremony where an apprentice geisha has her hair cut. That's it. I really have no respect at all for Arthur Golden; he's really disappointed me. I think he had a lot of potential, to show westerners how the geisha world really was; but instead, he choose to write a dishonest book just to make money. Sure he may be rich because of Memoirs, but that will never change what he did. Not only did he make geisha out to be slutty, he told the world that Mineko Iwasaki, a real geisha, sold her virginity. But Iwasaki-san did not sell her virginity, and saying so just crossed the line.