Memoirs of a Geisha

I saw the trailer for this movie and was left with a few thoughts:

What is this book? I heard of it before, but now I am puzzled to know that it was written by a european-american man. Surely it cannot be a real memoir?

Zhang Ziyi does not look even remotely Japanese to me, and that was disconcerting.

I would really like to see a popular movie about Asian women that isn't hyperfocused on the way they look or on them being "beautiful, silent" creatures.

Maybe I just need to stop expecting anything from popular movies. Except for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.