["Memoirs"] was a very orthodox story: Patience, patience, patience and good things will happen in the end. It's a bit like a Disney movie. It lacked reality. Usually women [viewers] will project their feelings onto one of the roles -- "If I were Kiyoha, if I were Sayuri [the lead character in 'Memoirs']."
But Sayuri's character was too old-fashioned. She was too patient. She wept just because someone untied the belt on her kimono. Americans have a fantasy that Japanese women should behave patiently and quietly.
But everybody told me I should see ["Memoirs"] because I was making "Sakuran."
To see it as an example of something to follow, or something to avoid?
To avoid [laughs]. But it must be really hard for a foreigner to make a Japanese movie. The average Japanese person tends to notice when a kimono is not worn properly. Or when they pull the [small] bell at a shrine and we hear the sound of a big bell. It doesn't matter to the story itself, but we think: "That's not the way."
You say you wanted to avoid sentimentality. But Kiyoha escapes. Isn't that a happy ending?
The Japanese like their heroes to die. In a way it was a happy ending because she was able to get out of the house and see the real cherry blossoms. But I would imagine she was probably caught and brought back right afterward.
bruce.wallace@latimes.com
