Final Essay

Drama and Epic Historical Film genres are two main film genres that can be at times incorporated into the same film. A film about a serious topic, portraying realistic characters in life situations and showing a character's development and interactions can, at the same time, give the audience a bit of cheer with some slight comedy, such as the scene where they are in town and she trips just when she thought she got the hang of walking in the heels or when the man hits the carriage as he was mesmerised by the main character, with fully costumed dramas portraying that it is historical. In addition, the epic historical element of a film can be created with extravagant settings and lavish costumes as the characters perform professional spectacles. A short scene from the movie, Memoirs of a Geisha, when the main character is to forget the past and become a new person with a new name, clearly portrayed the genres above. This is a film directed by Rob Marshall, which can also be more or less categorized in a sub-genre instead. In every scene of this short film from the movie portray that it is of these genres through from every shot to edit can then be explained through cinematography, mise-en-scene, sound and editing.

The mise-en-scene in this film illustrates the visual quality and is essential to the effectiveness of belonging to the epic and drama genre. The lighting in the Memoirs of Geisha has achieved the result of developing a deeper sense of surrounding and emotion. In this film, during the time of training to becoming a geisha, the lighting was dark, highlighting the main character, her actions and the objects in use. Most rooms were warmly lit, especially during times of learning and performance, creating a sense of professionalism and serious learning experiences. It creates a richly visual experience that is often typical of epic historical dramas. Effective and accurate props and costuming are essential especially in the Memoirs of Geisha as a historical film. It also added meaning and enhanced characterization. In the Memoirs of Geisha, it had small-scale props like the fans and make up equipment that were all entirely realistic and other large-scale props that accurately depicted the period of time that it was set in. In addition, it was filmed in traditional Japanese buildings, it used specific transport and they reconstructed the town that was imperative to the narrative to show its time and helped depict realism. In this film, the acting style is basically focused on the culture and becoming a geisha. The acting was very accomplished in the Memoirs of Geisha as throughout the film the characters keep their air of traditional practice as if they were from that time; the dances were also well practised and taught as it could be seen as a professional dance. The film wouldn’t have been nearly as successful if it weren’t for the masterful mise-en-scene.

Cinematography and effective editing are used to depict the skilful mise-en-scene used in the Memoirs of Geisha. Without it, the narrative would be disjointed and less meaningful. An important part of any movie is perspective. In this film, the perspectives are captivating and insightful, which increases the film's impact on the audience and the audiences understanding. Effectively, the tearoom shot, in the beginning, uses a continuous over the shoulder shot; this technique enables the audience to see what the characters see and notice. It has several close up shots of their hand movements to show clearly the procedures and skills being taught in a way that even the audience can learn. Many parts of this film are filmed as if the camera is taking the viewer's perspective, not a characters but the audience, and this is what the director wants you to see, know and understand. There are shots that come back and forth between two different scenes. This is very smartly done as it is like killing two birds with one stone, they show shots of her preparations just before she leaves for her debut and shots of her final lesson and at the end of both they are linked by her teachers words of ‘ you are ready.’ This is really effective as just watching her getting dressed would be far less interesting and by incorporating it into her last lesson, the audience notices it but is not bored by it. This effectively shows the passage of time through the film’s editing. The use of perspective can be very powerful. The Memoirs of Geisha mainly has high exposure. It utilizes high exposure to clearly see the environment that many of the audience have rarely seen before. Camera movement and speed were used efficiently in the film. For instance, throughout this scene the camera movement is slow, giving us a sense that it is a long process and, again, showing the passage of time even though they are showing the whole process in just a few shots. The Memoirs of Geisha show a lot clearly in a short amount of time but it is still gives a feeling as a slow processing historical drama.

Sound is also important elements in all films as it enables the director to manipulate scenes to create a desired feel. In the Memoirs of Geisha the sound played a big part in making it seem as though the process sped up and that the film shortened the amount of time that it actually lasted. Sound effects are crucial for epics, as they create a sense of surrounding and depth in the narrative. Throughout the film, traditional music was played, as a sense of time passing and in the foreground of the sound would always be the sound of movements and speech, for example, the opening of the fan when in practice of dancing and the teachings that are being spoken. Despite saying that, the beginning and end did not have music as time was moving slowly like it is in real life and not fast-forwarded. The traditional music adds to showing how it is in the historical time, which shows the accuracy of creating an epic historical drama. The tempo of the music, which is fast paced, give a sense of them rushing through the process in a short amount of time and emphasis the geisha’s training is serious or solemn and the importance of this journey. Being able to manipulate all elements of sound and editing makes a wonderful movie.

The Memoirs of Geisha is a very good example of the genres recognised and also has its own uniqueness in the style. The style of acting, props and setting increases the film's credibility and historic accuracy. The mise-en-scene was definitely an extremely important part to the overall film as it is set in a different time and not many of the audience would have a full understanding of the historical nature of that time. The wisely planned lighting and colour, contributes significantly to the overall visual atmosphere created. Sound and editing enhanced the meaning within the film and the learning experience that can be explored by the audience. The masterful sound and editing allows the film to induce and captivate the audience into the scene as though they were there. The cinematography further used visual elements to elicit interest from the audience. The film, the Memoirs of a Geisha is well planned and organised film, that portrays its meanings and storyline clearly despite being an unknown culture to many. This film, The Memoirs of a Geisha, portrays the genres of epic historical drama in the aspects of cinematography, mis en scene, sound and editing.