zillion29-1 Review of A Girl Named Tamiko

A Girl Named Tamiko (1962)

Score 1 For Emotionally Vacant Eurasian Manchildren, Score 0 for Womankind

[4/10 · 30 June 2011]

In the great tradition of Sayonara, Teahouse of the August Moon, Bridges of Toko-Ri, and Love Is A Many Splendored Thing, this movie is yet another 1950s-1960s era taboo-romance/travelogue picture with little going for it in terms of plot or authenticity. I find it odd that many people tout the exotic locales as a positive - a closer look at the film reveals that the leads spend exorbitant amounts of time interacting in front of projections, to say nothing of duped stand-ins walking through crowds and busy scenes. The unsettling mannerisms of Laurence Harvey actually lend some level of interest to his otherwise unlikeable character. The blonde vamp is an awful weak female stereotype. The titular Tamiko has all the makings of a strong female, but still ties her happiness to an emotionally vacant (at least until the last improbable minute and a half) jerk. It was interesting to see Tokyo of the early 1960s, but I'm inclined to believe very little of the movie was filmed in Japan. Most of the interiors reek of studio sets - right down to fake trees in some spots. Although not an offensive mess by any means, this is still horribly dated.