History YMMV / MemoirsOfAGeisha

* AlternateAesopInterpretation: Hatsumomo's story could be interpreted to have the lesson that invoking ScrewTheRulesImBeautiful is never going to work out in the long run. She treats everyone horribly because of her status and doesn't consider the consequences of alienating everyone around her. As a result [[ChristmasCake when she starts to age]], and another [[ReplacementGoldfish younger and prettier geisha]] comes along--no one has any reason to put up with her anymore. Even her plan to have Pumpkin inherit the okiya had no chance of working, given how she alienated everyone; Mrs Nitta chooses Sayuri purely because she doesn't want to put up with Hatsumomo (who would make Pumpkin her puppet)--which again all stems from how horribly Hatsumomo treats everyone.

* BrokenBase: The casting of the three Chinese actresses (though Creator/MichelleYeoh is Malaysian with Chinese descent) as Japanese characters sparked furor among the Chinese and Japanese audiences. While the Japanese are upset that no Japanese actress got any of the main roles, the Chinese were very hostile about it which doesn't help that the fragile historical relationship between the two countries since UsefulNotes/WorldWarII which the movie is set in only fanned more flames. However, several people such as Creator/KenWatanabe defended the cast, citing the actresses' performances was the reason for the casting. It's also become a talking point in more recent years for Asian actors to point out that white performers can play other nationalities [[FakeBrit like British]], [[FakeAmerican American]], [[FakeAustralian Australian]] etc but forcing Asian actors to only play their own nationality is narrowing down the already limited pool of roles (Creator/JamieChung: "They want Mulan to be Chinese now, which I appreciate, but it's cutting into my roles now").

* AwardSnub: Creator/ZhangZiyi was nominated for the Golden Globe, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild, Satellite, and New York Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Actress, but did not garner an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward nomination, thus missing out on becoming the first Chinese actress to be nominated for the award.

* BrokenBase: The casting of the three Chinese actresses (though Creator/MichelleYeoh is Malaysian with Chinese descent) as Japanese characters sparked furor among the Chinese and Japanese audiences. While the Japanese are upset that no Japanese actress got any of the main roles, the Chinese were very hostile about it which doesn't help that the fragile historical relationship between the two countries since UsefulNotes/WorldWarII which the movie is set in only fanned more flames. However, several people such as Creator/KenWatanabe defended the cast, citing the actresses' performances was the reason for the casting.

* UnfortunateImplications: [[https://www.globalmediajournal.com/open-access/orientalism-and-the-binary-of-fact-and-fiction-in-memoirs-of-a-geisha.pdf This article]] points out how fetishised the portrayal of the geisha is and how it feeds to the Asian hooker stereotypes. The movie ironically points out this specific stereotype and how it was exploited after the war.

** This change to the story is a {{Justified Trope}} because Mineko's situation was still close enough to birthright privilege that the average Joe wouldn't be able to see themselves in it. Mineko's father was a top kimono textile maker who would have been rich if he wasn't financially supporting the dead weights in the earlier generations of his family, who were accustomed to being feudal aristocrats and wanted to keep living that way even though they lost their fortune in the Meiji Restoration. His position in the kimono making world gave him connections to ''the'' top geisha house in the whole of Gion, which meant that the daughters he sold got opportunities that most other geisha didn't. Mineko, who was recruited to be the heir of the geisha house from the time she was three, was treated particularly well. We find out that Mineko worked extremely hard to turn her opportunity into success, and Mineko pulls no punches when she describes why the two previous would-be heirs didn't have the right character to be successful geisha. But Mineko is just as frank about the fact that an incredible opportunity basically fell into her lap at an extremely young age. Sayuri's story, meanwhile, has the message that even if you think it's too late for you to turn your life around, an opportunity may present itself, and if it does, you should work hard to make the most of it.

** This change to the story is a {{Justified Trope}} because Mineko's situation was still close enough to birthright privilege that the average Joe wouldn't be able to see themselves in it. Mineko's father was a top kimono textile maker who would have been rich if he wasn't financially supporting the dead weights in the earlier generations of his family, who were accustomed to being feudal aristocrats and wanted to keep living that way even though they lost their fortune in the Meiji Restoration. His position in the kimono making world gave him connections to ''the'' top geisha house in the whole of Gion, which meant that the daughters he sold got opportunities that most other geisha didn't. Mineko, who was recruited to be the heir of the geisha house from the time she was three, was treated particularly well. We find out that Mineko worked extremely hard to turn her opportunity into success, and Mineko pulls no punches when she describes why the two previous would-be heirs didn't have the right character to be successful geisha. But Mineko is just as frank about the fact that an incredible opportunity basically fell into her lap at an extremely young age. Chiyo's story, meanwhile, has the message that even if you think it's too late for you to turn your life around, an opportunity may present itself, and if it does, you should work hard to make the most of it.