Gion Bayashi (1953)

Gion Bayashi (A Geisha)
Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
Written by Matsutarô Kawaguchi and Yoshikata Yoda from Kawaguchi’s novel
1953/Japan
Daiei Studios
First viewing/Hulu

[box] Miyoharu: A geisha’s lie is not a real lie. It’s a cornerstone of our profession. Do we not amuse our clients by agreeing to all their requests?[/box]

Here Mizoguchi offers some small hope for his heroines amid their pain.  I liked this a lot.

Sixteen-year old Eiko is the daughter of a geisha who married one of her customers. Eiko’s mother has died and she is estranged from her pathetic loser father.  She has been living with an uncle who claims she owes him money and demands she sleep with him as repayment.  So Eiko flees to the Gion district of Kyoto and begs her mother’s friend Mioharu to sponsor her for training as a geisha.  Geisha training and outfitting is very expensive and Eiko has no capital nor will her father be her guarantor.  Finally, Mioharu relents and sponsors the girl herself.

Eiko is a diligent student and she is ready for her debut scarcely a year after this.  The kimonos and other gear required are immensely expensive.  So Mioharu goes to “Mother” who runs this particular band of geishas for a 300,000 yen loan.  Mother doesn’t appear to be the world’s most generous person but she agrees.  Eiko makes a very beautiful Geisha.

Things go downhill form here.  Eiko’s father takes to coming around regularly for hand outs.  It turns out that “Mother” did not actually lend Mioharu the money.  Instead the loan came from Kusuda, a 62-year-old wheeler dealer,  in exchange for “Mother’s” promise that he could be the 17-year-old Eiko’s “patron” (aka lover).  Then, Kasuda, who has been spendiing a lot of time and money on wining and dining a Ministry official in pursuit of a big contract, wants Miocharu to sleep with the official.  Neither woman wants to comply.  But “Mother” has even more tricks up her sleeve to get what she wants, not limited to completely barring the geishas from working.  How long can they resist?

It struck me that poor Eiko’s job as a geisha was not all that different from her situation with her uncle.  Her body was still her main commodity.  Only the kimonos were more expensive.  We get lots of scenes where these exquisitely refined and trained women have to be nice, and more, to a bunch of lecherous drunks.  It is truly disgusting.  At least, the ending of this one is not 100% bleak.  This is really well written and acted.  The print available on YouTube didn’t do any favors to the images.  Recommended.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsOHm3TivgQ

Trailer