A Geisha (1953)

Synopsis: Returning to the geisha life of the Gion district, director Kenji Mizoguchi offers a revisionist post-war version of his earlier SISTERS OF THE GION. Ayako Wakao stars as Eiko, the 16-year-old... Returning to the geisha life of the Gion district, director Kenji Mizoguchi offers a revisionist post-war version of his earlier SISTERS OF THE GION. Ayako Wakao stars as Eiko, the 16-year-old daughter of a recently deceased geisha, who nonetheless harbors some romantic notions about what the profession entails. Miyoharu (Michiyo Kogure), an aging geisha, agrees to take on the younger woman, initiating her into the life. After a year of training, Eiko is prepared to make her debut, but in order to do so she must obtain a sizeable sum from Okimi, the madam who owns the teahouse from which she would operate. To provide the money, Okimi must get a loan from businessman Kusuda (Seizaburô Kawazu), a client of Miyoharu, who intends to trade the geisha in an illegal business deal, while retaining Eiko's services for himself. Although the geishas accompany the businessmen on their trip to Tokyo, they refuse to sleep with them, and Okimi, infuriated by their rebellion, refuses to use them. Ayako Wakao is superb in this sensitive, nuanced account of the relationship between women of different eras. [More]

Starring: Michiyo Kogure, Ayako Wakao, Seizaburô Kawazu, Chieko Naniwa

Starring: Michiyo Kogure, Ayako Wakao, Seizaburô Kawazu, Chieko Naniwa, Eitarô Shindô

Director: Kenji Mizoguchi

Director: Kenji Mizoguchi
Screenwriter: Yoshikata Yoda
Story: Matsutaro Kawaguchi
Composer: Ichiro Saito

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