Kenji Mizoguchi's Geisha story from 1953:
A young woman's mother who used to be a geisha has just died. Her father is in no state to take care of her and her uncle who she has been staying with lately only wants her body.
So she turns to her mother's friend to take her into her care and let her become a geisha. When she enters the entertainment world after a year of hard training she faces what she was trying to leave behind her. (less info)