En liten Geisha: A quiet, uneven look at a life sold away

Should you watch this?

If you like movies that feel like they were pulled out of a time capsule from a dusty attic, maybe. It’s definitely not a fast-paced thriller. If you’re looking for something with explosions or, say, the energy of Susan Rocks the Boat, stay far away. This is all about mood and the weight of tradition.

The whole thing starts with Ohana being sold by her own dad. It’s brutal, but the movie doesn’t really lean into the melodrama as much as you’d think. It just sort of happens, like a transaction. A bit unsettling, honestly.

The Osaka days

The middle part of the movie is where it drags. You watch her train, and the dancing is nice, but it feels like the director wanted to stretch these scenes out to fill time. I found myself looking at the background wall patterns more than the actors at one point. The house itself feels a bit like the one in A Dream or Two Ago—hollow and kind of lonely.

There’s this one shot of Ohana practicing a movement, and it just… sits there. It sits there until it gets slightly uncomfortable. You can tell she’s exhausted, and not just from the dancing. She looks like she hasn’t slept in three weeks.

The exit

Then, suddenly, she’s out the door. The transition to her running off with the young man feels rushed, almost like they realized they only had ten minutes of film left. It’s not quite as smooth as the plot twist in Sherlock Holmes, but it gets the job done.

• The kimonos are gorgeous, though.
• The lighting in the geisha house is weirdly dim in every scene.
• I’m still not sure what the guy actually does for a living?

It’s not a perfect movie. It’s messy and sometimes the pacing feels like it’s struggling to breathe. But there’s a quiet sadness to it that stuck with me long after the credits rolled. 🌸 It’s better than the fluff of His First Flame, if that’s your benchmark.