Ma geisha

My Geisha is a film that I'm not sure why it is overlooked. Essentially Shirley MacLaine plays two roles in this film. One she's Lucy Dell, a Hollywood Actress not unlike Shirley MacLaine. But with a lot of heavy makeup she's also playing a geisha girl who husband/director Yves Montand picks to star in a film version of Madame Butterfly.

Shirley at that time was married to Steve Parker who lived and worked in Japan and they had one of the weirdest marriages on record. They stayed together almost thirty years, basically because they only saw each other once or twice a year with her living in Hollywood. But this film with Steve Parker producing it for his wife brought them together for a much longer sojourn.

Montand directs his wife's films and she's known as a good comic actress in the profession. He and her perennial leading man Bob Cummings want to do a serious drama, Madame Butterfly, film the Puccini opera with dubbed in singers.

MacLaine and producer Edward G. Robinson go to Japan, Shirley in secret and for a lark she puts on geisha makeup and outfit. Montand and Cummings are so taken with her that Montand hires the geisha that Shirley is pretending to be as the lead in Madame Butterfly.

The masquerade is kept going, but the joke runs into some unforeseen complications for all concerned.

My Geisha glides effortlessly from comedy to drama when the careers and egos of both MacLaine and Montand are on the line. It works out in a highly unusual way. Both Montand and MacLaine do very well by their lead parts with Bob Cummings portraying a wolfish leading man and Edward G. Robinson to dispense wise counsel for all.

It's a very good part for Shirley MacLaine. She summons some hidden depths for the film in portraying the tragic geisha of Madame Butterfly. It's one of her best films.

Shirley MacLaine is such fun to watch. She dives into her character body and soul. She leads you on and you follow her. It would be foolish not to. We don't question anything because we're in love with her. This movie is a real rarity.I suspect that Steve Parker, Shirley's husband then and producer of "My Geisha" actually directed this. He chose Jack Cardiff as the director, the great Cardiff one of the top cinematographers of all time -- See "Black Narcisus" for instance -- But, as we all know, a cinematographer is used to work with directors, cinematographers must be artists with a very different kind of ego. What a spectacular way for Steve Parker to direct his movie by proxy. Better plan, impossible. The film is a comedy slash morality tale with a stunning Cardiff like look and a delicious performance by MacLaine. Yves Montand plays her husband. His English is tentative at best but he is unquestionably charming in a clumsy written part. Edward G Robinson is another plus. His character's delight is utterly contagious. Many of my contemporaries are to jaded to enjoy this film, but I've tried it on kids and it works, let me tell you, they love it. Not to mention my parents. So there you are, I guarantee you'll love "My Geisha" if you're young, if you're old or if you're me.

"My Geisha" never quite manages its transitions smoothly, but they were trying something quite difficult for the period: a comedy with some genuine depth of feeling. They get there in the end, thanks to MacLaine and Montand, but there are a couple of stops along the way. You've read the setup by now, and know that Bob Cummings is playing her leading man, while her husband (Montand) is the Director of his first serious film without his wife's fame to help him succeed. He Has to Do It On His Own. It takes both his wife and his producer much too long to take this seriously, and thereby endanger both marriage and friendship. Because they think he'll come around, or appreciate the joke of her disguise, we do too...until he finally recognizes her. At that point, Montand stops being a supporting player and moves into full partnership. We believe him, and ache for him. We don't believe that "Bob Moore" is his best friend. Cummings' "arrested adolescent" is unfunny and unappealing, and he's given way too much screen time. Edward G Robinson is a pleasure throughout, but a lot of the gags - mixed bathing, sumo wrestling - are fairly condescending and forced in spite of the obvious admiration for Japan and its culture. The scenery is stunning, but there's sadness too in seeing it now. Nobody shoots beautiful films about Japan IN Japan any more; "Last Samurai" was largely shot in New Zealand, "Memoirs of a Geisha" in California. And the undercurrents - the Parker/MacLaine marriage and its eventual dissolution - sometimes haunt the script. Franz Waxman's peppy score keeps preventing us from really believing we're watching a shoot about "Madame Butterfly". When the Puccini music finally arrives, it's marvelous. And when Shirley lip-synchs the aria, she breathes like a singer. Shirley MacLaine went on to prove over and over again that she was more than a kooky comedienne...but at the time this film was made, it was a case of Art imitating Life. It's uneven, but parts of it are definitely worth seeing.

Most of this movie is a regular romantic comedy with some excellent stars. But the end of the movie, where Shirley plays the death scene from Madam Butterfly, will make you weep. I first saw this when I was in the military, and had never seen Madam Butterfly. After seeing this movie, I went to the opera to see the full opera, and it has become my favorite. Having seen the death scene many times in my life, Shirley's performance still ranks up there with the best.

Although I only saw this movie once over ten years ago on late night TV,I was struck by the beautiful scenery and the storyline somehow reminded me of James Mason & Judy Garland "A star is born".Shirley Mclaine is a favorite of mine and she managed to imbue the Japanese persona so purely and one could feel Yves Montand frustration and eagerness to achieve success without his wife.I cannot recall much more of this film but I do know that my best friend Maruschka has watched it so many times that her tape copy is wearing out.It is a classic love story. Very hard to find a copy for it and I would love to see it out on DVD.I would then surprise my friend by buying her a copy (and one for me also).Millie