Based on a blockbuster book by Arthur Golden that sold four million copies, the movie followed a long, tortured path to the big screen. The finished product is an American film about Japan's colorful ladies of the night played by Chinese actors and filmed entirely in California. 　　

Early reviews have been generally favorable. 　　

"Japan has always had an appreciation of Hollywood magic," producer Douglas Wick said in an interview. "Some of the very best Hollywood craft people have created this love letter to a lost Japanese world." 　　

Wick said the movie is not a historical documentary on the geisha culture but an effort to tell a "universal love story" that will appeal to international audiences. 　　

But during promotional appearances in Japan ahead of the movie's launch, the film's makers encountered criticism over its authenticity and its non-Japanese stars. 　　

"We were aware of the cultural sensitivities," said Wick, who produced the film with his wife Lucy Fisher and Steven Spielberg.

But Wick insists that he found "broad acceptance and enthusiasm for the movie" that far outweighed any gripes. 　　

ART OF THE GEISHA 　　

Wick said he spent eight years on the project and spoke with more than two dozen directors before hiring Rob Marshall, fresh from the Oscar-winning "Chicago." His vision was a movie that emphasized lavish sets and the art of the geisha. 　　

"Geisha" opens in New York and Japan this weekend on a limited number of screens. 　　

Wick hopes his big-budget movie, estimated to have cost $80 million, does better than the book did in Japan, where its American authorship gave it limited appeal. 　　

Its acceptance there was also marred by a much-publicized lawsuit by Mineko Iwasaki, the geisha whose life story inspired the book, over the use of her name and factual differences. 　　

In the movie, the main roles are played by Chinese actors who have recently made international hits, fanning criticism in both countries. 　　

Ziyi Zhang, who plays the blue-eyed geisha Sayuri, was the star of the much-acclaimed breakthrough hit, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" -- a source of much pride for China's film industry. But her portrayal of a Japanese women has produced mixed feelings in China, where resentment at Japan for its past military aggression runs strong. 　　

"She's sold her soul and betrayed her country. Hacking her to death would not be good enough," China's state media quoted one blogger as saying. 　　

One U.S. critic, in The Village Voice, saw problems with the film's handling of cultural issues, calling it "deluxe Orientalist kitsch." 　　Cultural Anthropology professor Anne Allison of Duke University said: "It's a problem in that it's Westerners viewing all of Asia as the same. It kind of confirms that it's less a movie about Japan and more a movie about The Orient."