memoirs of a geisha

"After all these are not the memoirs of an empress, nor of a queen. These are memoirs of another kind. "

yeah, i know that this movie was released a long time ago (2005), but i guess it is always better late than never. and thanks to the Philharmonic for screening this movie again under it's classic films slot.

it was such a beautifully done movie. the cinematography was excellent, with rich colors and brilliant angles, the performance of all the actors/actresses were not dissappointing and the scripts were just...amazing.

FYI, i didn't read the book. despite being popular among friends and critics (and nearly everyone who watched it seems to have read the book!!), i went there without having the faintest idea what it was all about. it must be something about geisha, i thought. obviously!!. but i was eager to watch it as i have always fond of movies with classic oriental motives.

all-in-all, it was a movie to watch again, even though it does have some flaws. as much as i enjoyed the movie, i couldn't stop from thinking how much better the movie would be if it was done in japanese. loads of people seem to be put off by the fact that most of the main actors are chinese and not japanese (thus lack the distinctive gracefulness of the japans) but i thought they have done an impressive job to make the characters look real.

and not to forget, this was my first time watching a movie in the philharmonic. i have been there before once, for a live play. but this time, it was a different hall and it's amazing. the setting was different from a normal cinema. they have this big screen, located under the stage and were raised from below when the movie started. and because it is a hall for theatre, the seats are arranged in two levels. below are the more expensive seats (stall and box) and above are the unreserved seats. and what i love the most was, before the movie started, there was a man, wearing a traditional scottish costume, playing a some classic tunes to entertain the audience.

so, that's how i spent my evening today.

and thanks bob, for explaining every single details about the hall. u made me feel like i was on a fieldtrip.