My Geisha ** (1962, Shirley MacLaine, Yves Montand, Edward G Robinson, Robert Cummings, Yôko Tani) – Classic Movie Review 11,257

‘It’s the WACKIEST HOAX That Ever Turned the Screen Hilarious!’

Director Jack Cardiff’s 1962 My Geisha stars Shirley MacLaine as famous movie star actress Lucy Dell who goes to Japan and masquerades as a geisha to show her well known film-maker husband Paul Robaix (Yves Montand) that she could be his Madama Butterfly in his new movie of the classic play.

Lucy is so convincing that she lands the star role, but, when Robaix finds out, he wants a divorce.

Director Cardiff’s serviceable, sometimes funny romantic comedy drama aims at Thirties screwball style, and this is suitably bizarre stuff, but, after a bright start, it runs out of sparkle.

The lovely Japanese settings, shot in Technicolor and Technirama, and Edward G Robinson as the conniving film producer Sam Lewis help. And Edith Head was Oscar nominated for Best Costume Design, Color. Makeup artist Michael Westmore fell ill and Shu Uemura took over the makeup for MacLaine’s Geisha role, leading him to launch his own cosmetics company.

The slightly awkward story and screenplay are by Norman Krasna.

Also in the cast are Robert Cummings [Bob Cummings], Yôko Tani, Tatsuo Saitô, Tamae Kiyokawa, Ichirô Hayakawa, Alex Gerry, Tsugundo Maki, George Furness, and Marion Furness.

Sequences from Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly are performed by Shirley MacLaine (dubbed by Michiku Sunahara) and Robert Cummings (dubbed by Barry Morell), and conducted by Franz Waxman.

Edith Head won eight Oscars and had 35 Oscar nominations. She appeared once in a movie as herself in The Oscar (1966) and again as herself in the Columbo episode Requiem for a Falling Star (1973) with her friend Anne Baxter, when her then seven real Academy Awards were shown, just before she won her last one for The Sting (1973).

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,257

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