Sayonara is a 1957 color (Technicolor) American film starring Marlon Brando. The picture tells the story of an American Air Force flier who was an ace fighter pilot during the Korean War.
Sayonara won four Academy Awards, including acting honors for co-stars Red Buttons and Miyoshi Umeki.
The film's screenplay was adapted by Paul Osborn from the novel by James Michener, and was produced by William Goetz and directed by Joshua Logan. Unlike most 1950s romantic dramas, Sayonara deals squarely with racism and prejudice. The supporting cast also features Patricia Owens, James Garner, Martha Scott, Ricardo Montalban, and Miiko Taka.
Plot
Major Lloyd "Ace" Gruver (Marlon Brando), the son of a U.S. Army general, is stationed at Itami Air Force Base near Kobe, Japan. He falls in love with a Japanese entertainer, Hana-ogi (Miiko Taka), who is a performer for a Takarazuka-like theater company, whom he meets through his enlisted crew chief, Airman Joe Kelly (Red Buttons).
Joe is about to wed a Japanese woman, Katsumi (Miyoshi Umeki), in spite of the disapproval of the United States military, which will not recognize the marriage. The Air Force, including Ace, is against the marriage. Ace and Joe have an argument during which Ace uses a racial slur to describe Katsumi. Ace eventually apologizes, then agrees to be Joe's best man at the wedding.
Joe suffers further prejudice at the hands of a particularly nasty colonel, pulling extra duty and all the less attractive assignments. When he and many others who are married to Japanese are ordered back to the States, Joe realizes that he will not be able to take Katsumi, who is now pregnant.
Finding no other way to be together, Joe and Katsumi commit double suicide. This strengthens Ace's resolve to marry Hana-ogi. When a Stars and Stripes reporter asks him what will he say to the "big brass" as well as to the Japanese, neither of which will be particularly happy, Ace says, "Tell 'em we said, 'Sayonara.'"
Cast
- Marlon Brando - Maj. Lloyd "Ace" Gruver, USAF
- Patricia Owens - Eileen Webster
- James Garner - Capt. Mike Bailey, USMC
- Martha Scott - Mrs. Webster
- Miiko Taka - Hana-ogi
- Miyoshi Umeki - Katsumi Kelly
- Red Buttons - Airman Joe Kelly
- Kent Smith - Lt. Gen. Mark Webster
- Reiko Kuba - Fumiko
- Soo Yong - Teruko
- Ricardo Montalban - Nakamura
Production
Brando adopted a nondescript Southern accent for Gruver, despite the objections of director Logan, who did not think a Southern accent was appropriate for a general's son who was educated at West Point. Logan later admitted to the author and journalist Truman Capote about Brando, "I’ve never worked with such an exciting, inventive actor. So pliable. He takes direction beautifully, and yet he always has something to add. He’s made up this Southern accent for the part; I never would have thought of it myself, but, well, it’s exactly right â€" it’s perfection.†Ricardo Montalbán, born in Mexico to Spanish immigrants, plays a Japanese character.
Critical reception
Sayonara has received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its writing and cinematography, in addition to the acting ability of its cast. It won four Academy Awards, including acting honors for co-stars Red Buttons and Miyoshi Umeki. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 100% critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 7.2/10.
The film earned $10.5 million in rentals in North America.
Legacy
Alongside the less successful Japanese War Bride and The Teahouse of the August Moon, Sayonara was argued by some scholars to have increased racial tolerance in the United States by openly discussing interracial marriages. Other scholars have argued that the movie is one in a long list stereotyping Asian American women as "lotus blossom, geisha girl, china doll, or Suzie Wong" by presenting Asian women as "passive, sexually compliant and easy to seduce" or as downright prostitutes.
Awards
Sayonara won multiple Academy Awards for
- Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Red Buttons)
- Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Miyoshi Umeki)
- Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (Ted Haworth & Robert Priestley)
- Best Sound (George Groves)
It was also nominated for
- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Marlon Brando)
- Best Cinematography (Ellsworth Fredericks)
- Best Director (Joshua Logan)
- Best Film Editing (Arthur P. Schmidt & Philip W. Anderson)
- Best Picture (William Goetz)
- Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium (Paul Osborn)
References
Bibliography
- Provencher, Ken (Spring 2014). "Bizarre Beauty: 1950s Runaway Production in Japan". The Velvet Light Trap (Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press) (73): 39â€"50. doi:10.7560/VLT7304. ISSN 1542-4251. (subscription required (help)).Â
External links
- Sayonara at the Internet Movie Database
- Sayonara at AllMovie
- Sayonara at the TCM Movie Database
- Sayonara at Rotten Tomatoes
- Trailer of Sayonara introduced by Miika Taka
- The Duke and His Domain by Truman Capote
- James Garner Interview on the Charlie Rose Show
- James Garner interview at Archive of American Television - (c/o Google Video) - March 17, 1999