"...Is that all he said?"
Lost In Translation is such an apt title. Yes, the film deals with people attempting to overcome a language barrier, no- a cultural one, in a foreign place, but what the film is really about is people who are lost. Lost in work, lost in relationships, lost in a mid-life crisis, lost in life. And yet among all these people drifting aimlessly, two very different people find comfort in one another.
Bill Murray is an aging film actor, named Bob, in Japan to shoot a whiskey commercial to make a cool $2 million. Scarlett Johansson is Charlotte, a newlywed woman whose continually left behind in the hotel room by her husband (the always awesome Giovanni Ribisi), a celebrity photographer on assignment in Tokyo. Much of the first half of the film shows Bob and Charlotte in desperate loneliness. When the two finally do meet, the forge a charming friendship and take ease that neither of them understand the culture here in Japan.
The first glimpses we see of Tokyo are through Bob dealing with culture shock. While shooting his whiskey commercial, Bob is given comically long directions from his Japanese director, yet the translator simply says, “He wants you to turn, look in camera. O.K.?” Scenes like this give the film it’s comedic edge. And this is much needed; from the get-go Bob is painted as being bored with his life, yes he is rich and successful, but somehow he’s not happy. Between the brief glimpses into Bob’s mid-life crisis and a heartbreaking phone call confessional from Charlotte questioning if she is happy with the man she married, Lost In Translation is overall a somber movie.
Director Sophia Coppola also wrote the screenplay and does an incredible job balancing between laughter and the serious beats that make the film a poignant one. As a director, she’s no slouch either; the film moves quickly enough yet we are treated to some shots that Coppola is not afraid to hold on screen for a second more than a lesser director would. These scenes usually revolve around windows: Charlotte looking out during the day, Bob coping with insomnia at night (i.e. the theatrical poster), or both of them at a karaoke bar. These usually leave us with beautiful shots of Tokyo at night and as anyone who knows me well enough, my favorite cinematography involves cities at night (Heat, Drive, The Dark Knight, Collateral). Anyway, these windows also serve as metaphorical “windows into the heart” as these scenes always show the character’s true feelings/self. Lost In Translation has so many layers to it that practically anyone can watch it and take something away from it. This just shows the talent of Sofia Coppola. Like her father, directing is in her blood and she has an undeniable talent for it. This was Coppola’s second feature film and it earned her an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, as well as nominations for both Best Picture and Best Director (which she was the first American woman to be nominated for and remains the youngest). Going through life we’re bound to lose ourselves once in a while, but as Lost In Translation shows us, sometimes it takes being lost to find what we need.
7/10
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