On S List of Movie Reviews

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Sayonara (1957)

Rate: 5
Viewed: 7/13

7/13: It feels weird to watch Sayonara while trying to be used to the idea that Americans and Japanese are forbidden from having an interracial relationship.

Then, it gets more weird when Japanese females are dressed up as dolls for the Americans, so they can give bath rituals, cook elegant dinners, and perform traditional routines for honor and duty. So, that's why I never got into Sayonara. I find it flat, boring, and long. As a matter of fact, I almost agree with the armed services' stance on interracial marriage because the soldiers don't deserve these Japanese females who can do better.

Marlon Brando is excellent as Ace Gruver as far as his mannerisms go; however, it's not among his best stuff. Miiko Taka is beautiful as Hana-ogi but is no actress. I don't see what makes Red Buttons' or Miyoshi Umeki's Oscar-winning performance special. Ironically, the film is about overcoming racial inequality, yet the producers decided on a Mexican, Ricardo Montalbán, to play a Japanese. In fact, they asked Audrey Hepburn for the role of Han-ogi, but she turned them down, finding the idea too incomprehensible.

All in all, Sayonara might be better if the movie practiced what it preached.

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