Memoirs Of Geisha, which woman loves... Options

Most of my girl friends love this movie and I'm not really sure why. They've watched the movie and then go ahead to read the novel.

To me, the movie was OK, but find it odd since what supposed to be a japanese character is played by an obviously chinese actresses. Zang Zi Yi (Mainland China) and Michele Yeoh (Malaysia) both are great dedicated actresses, but I've been closely associated them with Hong Kong movies.

For a Jap movie, I'd much prefer "Last Samurai" or "Zatoichi" with all the zests, actions and bravados... hehe typical guy movie aye!

For you psych major, why do you think woman loves this movie?
How do they personally relate to the story? something related to the cinderella syndrome?
Most importantly, what do you think we can learn about woman from here?

Imagine for a moment a movie entitled Memoirs of a Mage.

The Plot:

To pay off family debts, a young boy is sold to a Magickal Order. There he lives as a slave and is raised watching the amazing abilities of the magick workers with whom he lives, and for whom he works. One day, while purchasing items for his chores at the market, he encounters a teenage noblewoman who favours him with a slice of rare roast, and who recognizes that he is a boy of the Order, and who then encourages him to study hard when he gets the chance. The Archmage of the Order eventually takes notice of him, sees some potential, and decides that the boy will be trained to become a Mage. The boy is taken to a reknownly accomplished (with no false claims and postures) magick worker of the Order, who then systematically trains him. We see several of the key steps along the way of that training regime - the meditative work, the basic ritual work, etc... The apprentice even gets to observe his Mage teacher doing rituals and accomplishing manifestations, perhaps even an evocation or two, that are beyond the boy's abilities - but instead of discouraging him, he becomes determined to become a forbmiddable Mage of the Order, just as his teacher before. Also along the way, the boy and the Mage develop a close relationship - very akin that of a son with his father - which we see unfold, and make students of them both in relation to each other when it comes to issues like that of the heart, while they simultaneously focus on issues of the Art. We also see that the apprentice has rivals.

Eventually, the apprentice reaches the stage where he is ready to be initiated into the Order. We see his initiation, and his realization that an entire new world of study and community contribution opens up for him. The new Initiate Mage is a success, not only for his Order's training, but also with applying his skills for assisting the nobility ruling the demesnes of the kingdom. This makes his rivals even more determined to undermine him.

After contributing his skills for assisting various barons with his magick in nearby realms, and dealing with his chief rival, he encounters a woman - a Countess - of great intelligence, great learning, great passion, and thus great beauty. She is single not due to any fault of hers, but rather due to the faults of those who have courted her - for her appreciation for wisdom has made her intolerant of ignorant fools. This, of course, is the noblewoman he met years ago in his youth. She implores him to lend her his services - but for healing the heart of a friend of hers, which was broken by wrestling with destructive spiritual forces. The friend has been disfigured from his battles with demons - and the assistance of the Initiate Mage causes the friend to fall in love with him. However, the Initiate Mage only really loves the noblewoman.

In addition to this tragedy - nearby kingdom, ruled by a tyrannical theocracy that preaches against Magick as evil immorality that corrupts the people - takes over the country within which the Order resides. During the war, Mages are tortured and killed with religious zeal, even moreso than the rest of the populace, because of their magickal skills. A dark time descends upon the country as the world they knew shifts - as the old social structure adjusts - to the new exigencies of the "modern" empire taking hold.

And yet, the Initiate Mage survives - using his abilities to blend into the crowd, to bend like a reed in the wind...

**********

I'm going to stop there. Because my point writing all of this was to use the exact same plot structure and character dynamic of Memoirs of a Geisha. If you can appreciate this plot structure and character dynamic as I've outlined it - only with Mages instead of with Geishas, and simply switching the sex of the characters around - then you might be able to appreciate why that movie, and that book, appeals to women, Kinjo.

If you can get past the deliberate hype about it - which kind of actresses are in it, what the costumes looked like, how it's supposed to be the penultimate 'chick flick' - then you might be able to get that this story goes a bit deeper with issues of leaving an old life behind, encountering a skilled teacher, walking a path, mastering a path, dealing with adversarial situations, and finding love admist the vicissitudes of life.

If anyone else wants to know how the story ends, all they have to do is check out this movie, watch it to the end, and peer past the surface a bit to see the rubric of this story.